America's Liberty
by clarinetgirl628
Summary: During WWII, women aren't allowed to join the army. But that won't stop Jade from trying. It's impossible for her until she's approached by Dr. Abraham Erskine who wants to give her chance along with her new friend Captain America. Can she survive the war? Or will she fall in love along the way? Steve Rogers/OC Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys! Welcome to my second story: America's Liberty. This idea just popped into my head one day and I couldn't let it go. So here's the first chapter (they will get longer) and I ask that you please leave a review because that blue button can get awful lonely ;) Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Captain America: The First Avenger. I only own the Callaway family. Captain America rights go to Marvel.**

* * *

Chapter 1: One Strange Woman

_**Brave hearts do not back down.-Sophocles**_

Rejected. Steve Rogers had been rejected by the army. Again. For the fifth time. Or was it the sixth? Eh, it didn't matter, because apparently patriotism isn't enough to go into battle. All he wanted was to fight for his country, but that was over ruled by the asthma and all of his other conditions. One way or another, he would serve his country.

Steve snatched away the paper from the desk. It mocked him with its bold red print, "4F." Unfit for military service. Steve sighed and leaned against the wall as he put his shirt back on. He stared intently at the paper, wishing it would change before his eyes. His concentration was lost when he heard a woman yelling. His head popped up to see a small lady yelling away at a worker. Many people shifted uncomfortably. Had no one told his woman to leave? "Unfit! What do you mean unfit?" Steve watched as the girl's long wavy hair bounced up and down as she jumped around yelling. It was quite comical seeing her wave her hands around wildly.

"Ma'am, please calm down. You have an irregular heartbeat. That automatically deems you unfit for service." The woman put her hands on her hips and stomped impatiently. "It's not that, you just don't want me to fight since I'm a woman! Well listen buddy, one day women will be in charge and you'll regret not enlisting me!" And with that she turned back around to walk away. Steve chuckled to himself and began walking towards the door while still looking at the paper.

* * *

Rejected. Jade Callaway had been rejected by the army. She knew it wasn't entirely because of her irregular heartbeat. It was because she was a woman and these military big shots think she needs to stay home. It reminded her of her mother. JoAnne Callaway raised her only daughter and her two sons, Jacob and Jasper, on her own after their father died of cancer. Yet she still insisted that Jade should learn to be a 'proper lady.'

She dreamed of Jade learning to play an instrument. She insisted something classical like the violin or piano. Or both. The latter was chosen. Jade went along with it.

JoAnne insisted she sat up straight and tucked her right ankle under her left one. That she drank tea with her pinky up. That she sat up straight and sat there like a mindless zombie. Jade went along with it.

Her mother wanted to teach her how to cook for her future husband and children. Jade, reluctantly, went along with it.

JoAnne decided her daughter should marry a rich man at age nineteen, have children before the age of thirty, and be a good house wife. Jade had not gone along with it. In fact, that's when she moved out. Because she wanted to be more than a housewife.

But Jade was denied that dream by a simple "4F." Furious, she grabbed the paper and focused on ripping it apart as she walked. As she was about to rip it into sixteenths, Jade collided into another person. Both of them fell back. "Oh geez, sorry ma'am, didn't see you there. Are-are you all right?" Jade looked up at the man she walked into. He was standing up now, offering a nervously shaking hand to her. Jade took it and let herself be pulled up.

"Yes, I am fine. It was my fault. I should have been paying attention." That man was a little taller than her, which meant he was shorter than the average man. Jade noticed that he was pretty scrawny; no wonder she was able to knock him over. But what really stood out were his eyes. They were a soft, warm blue that reminded Jade of the oceans in California she had seen on vacation. And his hair was a sandy blonde, like the beaches, that was parted neatly to one side.

The man coughed and they both blushed. Jade realized she was staring. "Sorry, I'm Jade Callaway." She stuck her hand out, but the man looked at her funny. Finally, he shook her hand and stuffed his own into his pockets.

"Name's Steve Rogers, ma'am." Jade noticed that he refused to make eye contact with her. "You know, I'm not trying to be rude or anything but, you're quite an odd woman. I've never heard of a lady who wanted to be a soldier." Jade subconsciously adjusted her maroon blouse even though it was already tucked neatly into her black trousers.

"America's my home Mr. Rogers, and I want to be able to keep it safe. And not by collecting tin foil." Steve blinked at her a few times. This woman was pretty strange. But Steve admired her loyalty to the country. "So, you wanna kick some Nazi ass too?" Steve's eyes widened. _Did she just swear? _He thought to himself.

"Uh," he coughed at the awkwardness, "Yeah, I do. But I'm unfit for service." Here it comes, the laughing and disgust. The disappointment in his strength. Or lack of for that matter.

"Me too. They say it's because of my heart problems. But really they don't want a vulnerable woman as a soldier." Jade said it like each word was venom on her tongue. Steve smiled slightly at the fact that Miss Callaway didn't say anything the normal girls said. _Yep, she's different all right. _He didn't know what to say to her. So he said the first thing that came to mind.

"Well, if it were up to me Miss, you'd be fighting right alongside the men." She smiled warmly with a set of perfect teeth, contrasting perfectly with her deep, deep brown hair and well, jade green eyes. Steve guessed her name wasn't a coincidence. Jade glanced at her watch.

"Well I best be on my way. It was a pleasure to meet you Steve." Before he could say a word, Jade had already grabbed her coat and was walking to the door, catching a few glances from the men. One man had the nerve to whistle at her and was given a response of a slap to the head. Steve chuckled as he picked up his own coat. She really was something else.

* * *

Jade cursed herself for running late. Bumping into Steve Rogers upset her entire schedule, even though trying to enlist had already done that. She now had only five minutes to get to the restaurant or she would suffer through a lecture her mother would be sure to give. Running through the streets of New York in heels probably wasn't the best idea. Twice she had to yank her shoe from the hole in a manhole cover. Jade looked at her watch once more. She was officially late.

After fifteen minutes of running and colliding with other angry pedestrians, Jade finally burst through the doors of the quiet restaurant, almost tripping in the process. Her heels clicked across the hardwood floor until they found themselves on the deep violet carpet. At the table in a corner sat her sister-in-law, Allison, who was undoubtedly writing a letter to Jacob while he was stationed in England. Allison always wrote letters to him and she loved Jacob dearly. That's why Jade got along with the shy, timid girl. Jacob was two years older than Jade and had married Allison when Jade was eighteen.

Next to Allison was Jasper. Two years younger than Jade and incredibly childish. For a nineteen year old, he acted like he was thirteen. His hateful demon of a girlfriend Jordan, as Jade referred to her was fortunately nowhere to be found. She constantly ragged on Jade about how she wasn't a proper lady. Her mother loved Jordan.

Speaking of her mother, JoAnne Callaway glared at her daughter in complete disappointment. "You're late." Jade sat down at the end of the table, refusing to sit next to her mother.

"I know mother." Jade remained calm for the time being. Starting a fight here would do her no good.

"Where were you Jade?" She was ignored. Jade looked over her menu instead, seeming completely innocent. "Jade Willow Callaway, do not make me ask again. Now, where were you?"

Finally Jade gave in and simply replied, "At the recruiting office mother." Allison dropped her pen onto the table as her grey eyes bugged out. Jasper rolled his eyes and chuckled. But Jade's favorite reaction was from her mother. Her fists curled up into balls. Her left eye started to twitch. Jade was glad she didn't inherit that trait from her mother.

"You-you did what? They didn't-did they-you know...?"

"No mother, I didn't enlist. They rejected me." She said bitterly.

"Oh thank God. Don't scare me like that! What business do you have trying to enlist anyways? A lady does not fight along soldiers. Your place is here. You're twenty-one years old for Pete's sake. It's time for you to settle down." Jade slammed her fists down in her frustration.

"Mother, I don't want to settle down. Yes, I am twenty one. But I am young and I want to see the world and I want to defend my country that gives me all of these opportunities. And I don't want to settle for a guy and have to have his kids and bend to his every will. I wanna fall in love momma like Allison and Jacob. Like you and Dad did."

Jade's mother winced at her daughter's reference to her husband. "Don't you dare mention your father, God rest his soul, in the middle of an argument!"

"He would have supported me!"

"You don't know that!"

"Yes, I think I do!" Allison squirmed in her seat, trying to get back to writing her letter. Noticing her discomfort, Jade decided to end the argument. She quickly rose up from her seat and put on her jacket.

"Where are you going?" Jade grabbed her bag and pushed her chair in.

"For a walk. Don't worry, I'll be back soon." Her mother began to protest, but let it go. Again, there was no point in arguing more. Jade left the restaurant and walked down the streets.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys! Wow, I am so excited over the response that my second story got! Thank you for all the favorites, alerts, and reviews. Here is the next chapter and please, review ;) Oh and I am currently working on a cover for this, so if anyone has ANY ideas for it, please don't hesitate to leave a quick comment or a private message. Thanks!**

* * *

Chapter 2: A Second Chance

_**I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.- Nathan Hale**_

It was surprisingly quiet. Of course it was still pretty noisy since it was New York, but there was less yelling and cars honking. Everyone was probably getting ready for the unveiling of Howard Stark's newest creations. There was no doubt in Jade's mind that that's where her mother wanted to drag her to after their dinners. Sure, Howard Stark's inventions were quite impressive, but Jade saw no use for them. Things were fine the way they were.

Jade found herself passing by an alley. She glanced over at two men. Jade stopped and stared. One man was beating up the other guy, who happened to be quite scrawny, pretty viciously. The scrawny guy tried to fight back, on time using a garbage can lid as a shield. Jade looked closely at them. The larger guy she definitely did not know. But the other one seemed oddly familiar. He glanced over at her with unmistakable blue eyes.

"Steve?" She gasped out questionably. Yep, it was definitely him. The guy punched Steve again. Jade quickly ran over to them, Steve hunched over in a corner. "Hey, leave him alone!" Jade shrieked when the man pushed her back and continued his assault on Steve. "I said, leave him alone." The short and incredibly skinny girl jumped onto the man's back. Jade was fairly short and weighed almost nothing. But still the man ran around in circles.

He yelped and yelled out, "Hey, get off me lady! What are you doing?" Jade was abruptly flung off his back, landing on the concrete ground. She wasn't far from the ground in the first place, so it didn't hurt _as much_. She groaned in slight pain and moaned when another muscular man in an army uniform approached them. _Probably this guy's friend coming as reinforcements. _To Jade's surprise, the man picked up their attacker by the collar.

"What do you think you're doing? What kind of a man hurts a woman? Apologize!" He yelled with a triumphant smirk.

"Sorry, ma'am." Their savior dropped the man onto the ground, "Get lost and don't let me catch you near these two ever again." The now scared man scurried away in fear. Jade looked up at the man. He had neat brown hair and all harshness vanished from his strong facial features. "Are you alright Miss…?

"Jade? Is that you?" Steve got up from where he laid. He was trying to see if it really was the girl he knocked over.

"You two know each other?" She took the man's outstretched hand and propped herself up on her feet. Jade looked down at her clothes and tried to brush off as much dirt as possible.

"Yeah, we kind of knocked each other over at the recruiting office today. I'm Jade Callaway." The man saluted Jade. _He's lucky he can do that as a soldier._ Jade thought to herself.

"Sergeant James Barnes ma'am, but you can call me Bucky. Pleasure to meet you."

"Pleasure to meet you too, Bucky." The name sounded weird coming off her tongue, like it was more of a children's radio character's name. Jade heard the chiming of nearby clock. "Oh shit, it was great to meet you Bucky and to see you again Steve but I really have to go." Jade quickly ran out of the alley leaving a speechless Bucky and a laughing Steve behind.

"Steve, is it just me hearing things or did she just swear?" Steve patted his best friend's arm.

"Nope, she did just swear buddy." He began to walk away with a still speechless Bucky running to catch up with him.

"And you find that normal?"

* * *

Jade walked back down the streets only to find her family walking out of the restaurant. _Guess I'll be skipping dinner tonight. _Allison turned around and took in her sister-in-law's appearance. Her eyes widened, staring at the brunette's cheek. Jade lifted her hand up and felt the warm, sticky liquid. A gash had formed along her high cheek bone. It wasn't deep though and would stop bleeding soon.

Jade's mother finally looked over to her wounded daughter in absolute shock. "Oh my god! What in the world happened to you?" She yanked out the white handkerchief from Jasper's coat pocket, licked it, and began to clean the blood off of Jade's face.

"Oh mother, stop babying me!" Jade was about to answer her mother's question when she realized saying 'I got in a fight with a big, tough guy' wouldn't exactly go over well. So she came up with the first thing that came to mind. "Actually, the _strangest_ things happened." She moved her eyes to each side of her vision and bit her lip in anxiety. "I-I was in a shoe, no dress, I was in a dress shop and there was this mirror, a three panel mirror that surrounded me and it just…uh, exploded." She said it like a question while she made a gesture that meant explosion as the lie slipped horribly through her teeth. It was way obvious that her mother didn't believe her, but the woman continued on about Jade arrived just in time.

"We're going over to the Technology of the Future expo." She led the way to the parking lot while the three young adults lagged behind some. "And do you know who will be there Jade?" She leaned over and looked at Allison and Jasper, mouthing the words _"Howard Stark." _She rolled her eyes and Allison giggled mother practically squealed like a teenager. "Howard Stark! Oh Jae, he's an absolute genius, so creative too. Plus he's strikingly handsome! Now _he _is husband material!" No, to Jade he absolutely was not. Howard Stark cared about his inventions and looking good on stage. Jade would feel like the little housewife she never wanted to be. The one she tried desperately to avoid becoming.

"Howard Stark is _not _my type mother." They were directed by the older woman to a brand new car. It was black, shiny, and had _all _the bells and whistles.

"When did you get the new car ma?" Jasper whistled in approval as he walked in circles, his hands in his pockets. To Jade's surprise, her mother walked over to _her. _She took her hand, palm upward, and gently placed the keys to the car in her possession. Jasper stopped and stared at them, his jaw practically hitting the concrete. "Why does she get a car and I don't?"

JoAnne looked at her youngest son with narrowed eyes before turning back around to her daughter. "This is not from me. It's a gift to you from, uh, Howard Stark. He didn't know where you lived so he dropped it off at my house and told me to give it to you." At the mere mention of his name, Jade moaned in frustration. There he was again.

"Mother, I told you before when you forced me to call him and go on that stupid date with him, I. Am. Not. Interested."

_**ooo~Several Months Earlier~ooo**_

_Jade and her mother walked down the street as they stopped at various stores, enjoying a simple girls' day out. Jade fiddled with the new dress her mother thought was perfect for her and paid no attention to where she was walking. As a result, she ran right into someone. (Seems like she has an act for doing that) "Whoa, sorry there Miss." The voice was deep, but a little rough. Jade looked up at the man as he placed his hands on her shoulders to steady her. He was average height with dark brown locks of hair. "I'm Howard Stark."_

_Oh yes, Jade had heard of him, but wasn't entirely impressed. Being polite, she smiled. "Hi, I'm Jade Callaway." Howard Stark gave her a dazzling white grin._

"_Well, it's nice to meet you Jade. Maybe we could meet each other again." He handed Jade a business card, flashed a grin, and walked on. Jade threw the card onto the sidewalk, only to see her mother pick it up and scurry over to her. _

"_Oh Jade, that was Howard Stark. _The _Howard Stark! And he gave you his number! Oh, you should call him and go out together." Jade directed her mother into a store and looked at their selection of scarves._

"_Eh, I'm not exactly sure he's my type mom."_

"_Well then what is your type?" Jade sighed as she ran her hands over the warm silk over a green scarf with gold accents. It was a rare thing to see this good of quality of silk during the war. Jade knew she had to have it. She picked it up and tried it on. Her mother nodded in approval and the gestured for her to answer the question. _

"_Well, I want a guy who's not all about looks. Of course I'd love someone good looking, but he shouldn't be self obsessed and wrapped up in himself. I want a guy who will be there for me but treat me like an equal, not like a housewife with no rights. He'll let me work and will help out and then eventually we'll get married and we'll move to a beautiful house in the suburbs with a white picket fence and we'll have kids, but in the end I'm still equal to him. I'm his partner." Jade noticed she was in 'la-la land' and quickly recovered. "Um, he'd be brave and would be a fighter. I'd love a soldier. I guess they're pretty easy to find nowadays." Jade stopped talking when she saw her mother smile widely. _

"_Jade, he sounds perfect. But for now, you should at least give Howard a chance. Call him, see how it goes." And so Jade had the phone shoved into her hands that night. Her date with the genius started off fine; she wore a stunning rose pink dress. It was floor length with a shirred bodice. Decorative buttons lined down the front of the bodice. It was completed with a matching short sleeve jacket of the same color. But the date quickly went downhill. It became as boring as she thought it would be. But ever since then, Howard Stark had been trying to make her swoon and fall head over heels for him with gifts. _

_**ooo~ooo**_

Jade snapped out of the memory and took the keys from her mother. The car was definitely going to be returned tonight.

* * *

Jade stood in the crowd, looking up at the stage. _"Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Howard Stark!" _The music played and the five show girls gestured to Mr. Stark as he came on stage next to an ordinary car.

"Ladies and gentlemen, what if I told you that in just a few short years, your automobile won't even have to touch the ground at all?" The girls removed the car's tires and then Howard pulled a lever. The car began to actually float.

"Whoa," Allison whispered, completely amazed. And then suddenly, the car let off sparks and fell to the ground.

"I did say a few years, didn't I?" Was that all he could say? He laughed it off and after a few more inventions Howard Stark left the stage for an 'intermission.' Jade groaned as he walked straight up to her family. "Hello Mrs. Callaway. May I say you look gorgeous tonight as usual?" Jade's mother smiled and winked at Jade. "Allison, it's nice to see you again. Please, tell me Jacob is alright."

Allison smiled at the nice way Howard put, 'So is your husband still alive?' Allison nodded and said, "Yes, he's stationed somewhere in England. Thank you for asking."

"Jasper, how are you?"

"I'm well Howard." Jasper didn't really get along with Howard. He tolerated him, but thought he wasn't best for his sister.

"Well that's good. Listen, I've got an extra ticket to the Yankee's game. I was wondering if you would like to accompany me." So that was his play, he was trying to win over Jade by being friendly to her brother. But Jade knew Jasper was her favorite (don't tell Jacob) for a reason.

"Thanks Howard, but I'm more of a Dodger's fan." Howard nodded and turned to Jade last.

"Hello Jade, you just look lovely tonight."

"Hello Howard," Jade grumbled out.

"I'm so glad you came to the show. Please, tell me you received your gift." Jade nodded mindlessly, looking around until she spotted a sign for recruiting. _Why not give it another shot, _she thought. "Well listen, maybe we could go out to dinner sometime. I know this great little restaurant that serves the best-"

"Uh, Howard," Jade interrupted, "I just realized that I have to be somewhere so I'll have to take a rain check on that date." By the time she finished her sentence Jade was already walking off towards the recruiting tent, hoping for a second chance.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you to all that reviewed!**

**Ali: Thank you for being my first reviewer of this story! I came up with this idea and looked at the collection of Captain America stories. I was quite surprised I hadn't found something like this so I figured, why not? I actually have figured out Jade's superhero name but it shall only be reviewed when the time comes! Thanks for reviewing!**

**TA-twinArmageddons: Thank you and I'll be sure to update soon!**

**Guest (but under the name Ali): Thanks for reviewing.**** I promise that I will not give up on this story. Now if you excuse me, I must go apologize to the children now, lol**

**TenebrisSagittarius: Thanks you for reviewing, I enjoy every review no matter how small. Now that I'm _really _out of school I should be updating more often.**

**DarkRulerKida: Thanks for reviewing. I like to do stories that you don't see a lot so this definitely worked out.**

**Now just because they reviewed doesn't me that you (because I know you're reading this) shouldn't. It barely takes a minute. I appreciate every word. So review and please, no flame. I like to improve my writing not be totally bashed. That doesn't help me at all. Ciao!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Ok, this is going to be a short author's not today because I did this once and then it like wiped it out so, here is chapter 3. Review please ;) Oh and please excuse my horrible attempt at a German accent!**

**TenebrisSagittarius: I hoped people would like those two words together. Thanks and I'm going to try and update soon!**

**Ali: I also find the guest thing very annoying. I like to show my love and appreciation towards my reviewers by responding to each review but if I can't include some kind of name I feel like it's cold and unpersonal. Not cool. Thank you and I should update soon I hope.**

**Guest: Thank you and I'll try and get the next chapter up as soon as possible :)**

**DarkRulerKida: I'm getting excited too! I've got some great things planned for Jade, thank you!**

**Cerulean89: Thank you, I'll try to get the next chapter up ASAP!**

**TA-twinArmageddons: Lol, oh Howard. What have you gotten yourself into. I wanted someone else to be into Jade and it was between him and Bucky. But I just didn't like the idea of it being Bucky with him being Steve's best friend and all. And that's exactly what I want, Jade is supposed to be able to connect to the readers. Your supposed to be able to see yourself in her :D Thank you!**

**Celebrytie Aris Channas: Thank you, I'll try and get another chapter up soon.**

**Guest: Thank you. One of my favorite comments is just a simple 'I like this story' because it makes me feeling like I'm not putting a crappy story up. It's all I need to hear, so thank you!**

**MusicManiacGirl: Ah Howard, I guess the heart wants what the heart wants lol thanks for reviewing!**

**KyraNoelle: Thank you, Jade is supposed to be the kind of person who never stops trying. I hadn't seen a lot of the idea of another person being changed so I wanted to see how it would work out. I will admit that I am not a fan of her swearing either. It just doesn't seem right to me. I put it in there basically to show how she is so unlike the usual women of her era but there will be very very little swearing from now on. It may be every once in a while but you won't see it a lot. And rushing chapters is something I've always struggled with so I doing my best to improve it. Thanks and I'll try to get another chapter up soon.**

* * *

Chapter 3: Separation

"_**Women are not weak, frail little flowers that they are advertised. There has never been anything invented yet, including war, that a man would enter into, that a woman wouldn't, too." –Will Rogers**_

Jade walked into the recruiting office. It was a massive tent with several separated sections as make-shift clinics for doctors to perform a physical. There was almost no one there. She filled out the required paperwork and was instructed to sit down inside a room for her physical. As soon as the doctor walked in and saw her, he walked right back out.

"I knew this was a bad idea," she whispered to herself. A few minutes passed before another doctor walked in. This one had graying hair and a scruffy beard. His glasses slid down his nose as he looked down at a clipboard.

"Miss Jade Callaway?" His voice was rough with a thick German accent.

"Yes sir," Jade said confidently. It was obvious to her that he wasn't like, a Nazi. No, if he was, she'd be dead or captured by now.

"You are quite…intervesting I must zay. A voman vanting to join zee army. Impressive. But alas, you 'ave an irvegular heartveat. Too bad. Zee country could use somevone vike you." He scribbled something on the clipboard and turned to Jade. "I 'eard you in zee recruiting of-vice. You never asked zat man iv he vanted to keel zee Nazis. No, never mentioned keeling. Just kicking their azzes." He chuckled to himself. "Becouse all you vant to do iz keep your home safe. Zat iz what a true zoldier should vant. Not to keel, but to protect."

The man sat down next to Jade and they both stared straight ahead at the wall. The clock ticked as each second of silence passed. "I don't want to fight anyone," Jade broke the silence and pushed a few strands of hair behind her ear. "I just want to make sure everyone I love is safe, even if it costs me my life." She whispered the last part, more trying to convince herself than the doctor. But even though she hated the thought of dying, she'd still do it if it meant her friends and family were safe.

"Iv you had zee chance to, vould you join zee men in var?" Without hesitating she nodded violently. "Zere iz a procedure zat vill change you. You'll be fit for comvat and more. I need a male subject and a female subject vor it. Becouse eventually both vill vork together." Jade thought about what he said.

So he was either a doctor or a scientist and he created a procedure that would make her healthy. The other doctor must have sent him in here, so she probably wouldn't go through some extremely dangerous process that would be like an experiment that the Nazis do. And so she could go to war. She could fight. "What would I have to do Doctor, oh I'm sorry I didn't quite catch your name."

"My name iz Doctor Abraham Erskine. And you vould start ov by going through boot camp and then iv ve saw zat you vere right for it zen you vould go through zee procedure." Hm, boot camp. Jade could prove she was worthy to fight with the men.

"Dr. Erskine, as long as I get to fight, I'd do anything." The doctor nodded and pulled out a stamp from his coat pocket. He slammed it against the clipboard and gave Jade the piece of cardstock. It was similar to the one that rejected her. Except this one didn't reject her. It enlisted her.

"Pack your bag vith only necessary items. Here's a packet vith zee invormation you need. I shall see you soon Miss Callaway." Dr. Erskine got up and handed Jade a packet. Then he left her alone to her thoughts.

* * *

Jade got back to her apartment late at night. She flopped down onto her couch and sighed before erupting into a fit of joyful giggles because she was going to be a soldier. Jade took out the packet from her bag. There was almost everything she needed to know: where to be picked up, what should be packed, what couldn't be brought, her schedule, and what training would entail. That was only the tip of the iceberg. But it was only a generic packet and it didn't say when she would depart. The piece of cardstock didn't tell her much either.

"Well, when do I leave?" She screamed out in frustration. Jade flipped the card and looked at the back. She smiled in victory as she read the red bold print on it;

TRANSPORTATION FOR RECRUITS DEPARTS ON THE MONDAY FOLLOWING THE DAY THIS CARD IS RECEIVED AT EXACTLY 0530 HOURS. ARRIVE AT THE CORRECT PLACE OF DEPARTURE (LISTED IN YOUR PACKET ACCORDING TO CITY OF ENLISTMENT) NO LATER THAN 0500 HOURS FOR CHECK IN.

Jade smiled. It was Saturday.

* * *

Monday came quickly. Jade spent the weekend preparing her apartment for the days she'd be gone. She had no pets, but she did have some plants. So she was having the little girl from the apartment across the hall water them everyday. So other than her bills, there was nothing to worry about. On Sunday night, Jade had packed her casual clothes, undergarments, and one or two dresses just in case. Along with her toiletries, everything fit into one small duffle bag. And she made sure to grab some stationary and stamps.

After traveling for a few _long _hours, Jade's feet finally touched the gravel of the ground. She stretched her legs, curled her toes, and cracked her knuckles. It felt good to be wearing jeans that hugged her waist- but were sort of baggy for easy movement- a black t-shirt that hugged her curves- it was incredibly hard to find the t-shirt in her size, but there was one shop that sold worn out clothes and she was very lucky to find it- and combat boots- which happened to be a couple sizes too big and were also worn out- that made a wonderful stomping sound when she walked. It had been her lucky day when she went shopping.

Jade walked a couple feet. The dirt crunched underneath her boots before she stopped and looked around the camp. Recruits jogged in a perfect, straight line. An obstacle course was situated off the one side. Men dressed in the standard training uniform crawled, climbed, and jumped through each obstacle set up. To Jade's left was the mess hall and bunks. The mess hall was a fairly large, wooden building in a rectangular shape with a roof like you would see on a barn.

The bunks were smaller versions of the mess hall that were slightly narrower. Jade turned around to the soldier who had driven her and a few other recruits into the camp. He had introduced his rank, but Jade hadn't been listening at the time. "Excuse me, sir?" His brown buzz cut and hazel eyes snapped to her. "Where will I be sleeping?"

The man grabbed a clipboard from the truck and glanced over it. "I assume you're Callaway?" Jade nodded. There were probably only a few women on that list, if she wasn't the only one. "Uh, you're in building 'I.'" He pointed over to one section of the camp with some bunks. Jade saluted him with glee and walked off past the many buildings. She reached the small section where the soldier had pointed to. The bunks were lined up with five buildings on each side. In the middle was a stretch of dirt with a flag pole in the center. Good ol' stars and stripes flew high and proud. Each building had a metal letter by the door. Jade read each one as she walked down the wide dirt pathway.

"A." _I wonder who I'll be bunking with. I don't think they'll let me bunk with the men._

"B." _I'll probably have a different shower time too._

"C." _That guy said my training will start tomorrow. Oh gosh are my muscles going to hurt!_

"D." _I wonder how many women are actually here other than me._

"E." _Looks like I'm almost there._

"F." _Wait; are there only two more bunks left?_

"G." _One more._

"H." _Huh? Where's I? _Jade spun around looking for another building. Surely these weren't the only bunks here. But the soldier had pointed directly to this area. Jade looked around again. Then she noticed a much, _much,_ smaller building off to the side, concealed by the plant life. It was maybe a fourth of the size of the others. Around it was thick shrubbery, hiding it from the world. There were maybe two windows, each completely covered by cobwebs. Jade walked up to the uncared for shack. She pushed back the leaves of a tall bush away from the door. Sure enough, a worn out letter 'I' was barely hanging on the side.

Jade cursed under her breath. She turned the knob and pulled the door with as much force as she could muster. It swung open and dust spewed out into the once fresh air. Jade coughed and wheezed. Her eyes closed on instinct. After a few more dry coughs and a sneeze or two, Jade opened her eyes and walked into the strange bunk. Each step creaked under the rotting wood. Light shone through from the window. A usual building had maybe twenty to thirty bunks with the usual two beds stack up on each other. This one was anything but usual. It had four single beds, two on each wall. There were two nightstands; each was between the two beds on a wall. There were also two windows. One on the left wall, one on the right.

On the right side of the back wall was a roll top desk with nothing on it. On the left side of the back wall was an open door. Jade could see a _very _small bathroom with a sink squished next to a toilet squished next to an even smaller shower. It looked like you could only move around in circles. Circles that would make you trip. There weren't any personal belongings in the room. Jade was the only one there.

"Oh you've _got _to be _kidding _me!" The pieces clicked together in her head. A smaller bunk away from the others with no one else in it. A separated shower, not the ones all mushed together. "They've separate-, no segregated me!" Fury built up inside of her. _I'm a soldier, just like the others, _she thought. _I should be treated the same. _Having a different shower time would have been just fine; it would have been _way _too awkward. But her own shower? And putting her into a confined and separated bunk? They were treating her like she was some strange alien who would inflict disease on anyone she goes near. _This is ridiculous. _

Jade dumped her bag onto the nearest bed and flopped down onto it. "This stinks." She looked at her wrist. The nice, old clerk at the store she went to was a sweet old lady. Turns out she was a fighter for women's rights and when she found out that Jade, a simple woman, had joined the Army, the woman had smiled and gave Jade one of her last watches free of charge. Jade treasured it now. It was a symbol of the people she was doing this for. It was 1132 hours. Lunch was at 1200 hours. Jade pulled out a fresh sheet of paper and a pen from her duffle bag. She pulled out the rotting chair from the desk across the room and sat down, placing the paper down onto the desk. Jade smoothed out the non-existent wrinkles of the page and uncapped the pen, chewing on the end of it while debating who to write to. Once she came to a decision she began scribbling on the page in her neat school-girl handwriting.

_Dear Jasper,_

_ Okay, you and mom can stop freaking out about where I am. I was going to write to mom, but she would probably have a heart attack if she found out where I was. Then I thought about writing to Allison, but as much as I love her she is not my baby brother. Yes, I'll stop calling you a baby now. So here it goes, I, well I enlisted again. And they recruited me this time. I've been enlisted under some special project, but I can't talk about that because it's "top secret." Sorry._

_But what I can talk about is how it's been going so far. I've been at this boot camp for less than a half hour now and I already miss you guys, but I will just have to get used to being so far away. It's not that great here so far. They have separated me from the other soldiers. I will still train with them of course, but I am currently living in a rickety shack that hasn't been touched since the beginning of time. I am not bunking with anyone because they've put me off in my own "corner." It's lonely, cold, and miserable. I guess I am thankful for my own shower though. That would be quite awkward._

_I wish they would see me as a soldier first, not as a woman. You're the only one who used to treat me like me. Mom made me act like a proper lady even when I was just a kid. Dad, God rest his soul, treated me like his little princess. So dainty and precious that couldn't hurt a fly. Like a porcelain doll. I love them both so much but they never wanted anything else for me. I guess it was just old fashioned ways. Jacob saw me, no sees me, as his little sister. He always worried about the boys I would bring home. He would fuss over how I needed to be protected because I was just a woman and he thought that he would always have to just make sure I married the right guy._

_But you treated me like an independent woman who didn't need to be protected. Jacob would escort me to pretend tea parties and when I said I was going to the bathroom, I would sneak out to play catch with you. Mom and Dad would want to take me to the theater. I would pretend I was sick and when they would leave you would teach me how to shoot the BB gun. Remember when I aimed for a rabbit and ended up shooting mom's garden gnome? And you took the blame. I love you for that Jasp, and I know I'm not supposed to do this but, you're my favorite. So thank you for being the best brother a girl like me could ask for._

_I better be going now, it's almost time for lunch. I promise I'll write again soon. Oh and please don't tell anyone where I am. Especially not mom! Thank you!_

_With love from your sister,_

_Jade_

* * *

**A/N: Anyone see the new cover? Huh, huh? What do ya think? This chapter is dedicated to my awesome friend, H, for giving me the idea for it. The girl is actress Lyndsy Fonseca. She's who I'd want to play Jade :D Ciao!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hey guys, I am so so so so so so so so so so so so so so sorry that I took so long to update. I had this really bad case of writer's block and I would just sit there with my notebook in my lap and would do nothing. Just stare at a blank page. This chapter's kind of a filler but it's also important for the development of the story. Please review ;)**

**To my reviewers-**

**Ali: Thank you, I just loooove my cover. I have no idea why. I just do. I'm so sorry it took so long to update. I will admit that your last review was what finally broke my writer's block and you're the reason this chapter is up right now. So thank you so so much!**

**Emily: Thank you! I'm sorry I wasn't able to update sooner, but better late than never I guess!**

**TA-twinArmageddons: Yeah I know. I have a horrible habit of making them too short. I read all these stories with like three times the amount of words I write and I think wow I suck at length. But thank you for reviewing.**

**MusicManiacGirl: Eep! Just because you asked so nicely, your wish may come true!**

**Emberscar: Thank you so much. I thought that since back then letters were the preferred way of communication that it would be nice to put them in. They will definitly be a reoccuring thing! Thanks!**

**Carlypso: Thanks so much!**

**evansita:Thank you so much. Sorry I didn't upload sooner but my writer's block was just horrible! Ugh! Thank you!**

* * *

Chapter 4: An Unexpected Friend

_**My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me- Henry Ford**_

Jade sealed the envelope closed and stuck it into her back pocket. She would mail it after lunch. Then-according to the schedule she was given-she had to get her hair cut. That made her nervous. Jade only had her hair cut once when she was six. She went home crying because her hair was cut just a bit above her shoulders. So her hair grew out down to her waist. Anyways, after her hair got cut she'd get her training uniform and then the rest of the day was all hers.

Jade bounced up from her seat and walked out the door. The air was crisp and clean. Very different from the musky, dusty, and rusty smell of her bunk. She took many short strides as she passed each building. There were a few other people walking around too and each one gave her a look as to say; "What are you doing here," and "You don't belong here." This wasn't right. She was supposed to feel welcome and at home. Jade wasn't supposed to receive hateful or questioning looks.

Slightly annoyed, Jade marched to the cafeteria. Her boots clomped against the gravel. The sound was almost comforting to her. _Almost. _The doors were already open for the lunch time traffic. Jade slowly walked inside. She was hesitant to walk in any further than the two feet from the threshold she was already at. But she pushed herself forward and strode over to the end of the line, her head down the entire time.

The tray she picked up was warm and wet in her hands from just being washed. As she took each step down the line, Jade's eyes stayed glued to the metal bars of the shelf her tray was on. Jade never looked up, not even when a server would cough for her attention. She would simply lift up the tray, wait for the plate to hit it, and move on. It made everything better for her.

Finally she turned around to face the crowd, her head slowly popped up. There were so many people it was overwhelming. And the only women in the room were either nurses, office workers, or behind the counter. Oh this was not good. Each table was full or had maybe a single seat left. She got even more glares from the people around her.

It was like high school all over again.

Jade was never really popular. They considered her weird and different even back then. Her few friends were, well…nerds. Fitting in was next to impossible.

Back in reality, Jade looked around once more. Alone in a corner was a table with only a single occupant. He was smaller than the other men in the mess hall, with blonde hair. He was huddled over a notepad. Once hand scooped food into his mouth while the other traced lines over the page with a pencil. _It's better than sitting alone outside, _Jade pondered over this for a moment before cautiously finding her way to the table. She coughed a little, "Um…can I- do you mind if I…sit here?" The man looked up. Blue eyes. The color of Californian oceans. "Steve?"

"Jade?" The blonde looked slightly confused, but also...relieved? Jade took a seat across from him and set down her tray.

"What are you doing here?" She asked as she picked at her food with her fork.

"I got enlisted under some sort of program! What about you? What are you doing here?" He seemed excited now that there was someone he knew here.

"I got enlisted too. Also under some sort of super secret project. Weird, huh?" He nodded for a moment before a wave of awkward silence washed over them. "Listen, Steve…if you don't want me here then I can go find another seat." She picked up the tray and began to get up. "I don't mind. It's no big de-"

"No! Sit, please!" He held up a hand to stop her while blushing a light pink shade. "There-there's no one else at this damn camp that, that I can talk to. That I can be friends with. And I-I already know you so it's even better. I understand if you don't want to stay, but it'd be great if you did. We're both outsiders here so…it only makes sense that we, you know, be friends."

Jade smiled. It was only her first day at the boot camp and it seemed like every single person there _despised _her. But now there was someone who didn't and Jade wasn't about to let him go. She carefully sat the tray and herself back down. "I'd love to be your friend."

Steve returned the smile. He closed up his book and began to set it on the bench next to him until Jade reached out for it. Steve playfully pulled it away from her, which made her even more determined. "Oh come on! I saw you drawing. Let me see!" She giggled as he taunted her by inching it closer to her hand and then pulled it away when she went to grab it.

"No," he gasped out between laughs.

"Steve Rogers, do not _make _me beg!" He only laughed more. Finally, to Jade's relief she caught hold of the leather bound journal and snatched it from Steve's grip. He gave up trying to protect it and went back to staring at his tray as she flipped through the worn out pages. "Wow Steve, these-these are amazing!"

He fidgeted some. "I uh, I went to art school for a year." Jade's smile only brightened.

"Nuh uh, this has got to be some kind of natural talent! This was not just some basic design courses!"

"I'll admit that I really only went to art school to clean up my drawings. Made them look professional. Okay, what about you? There's got to be some talent hidden by that thick veil of hair." Jade sunk back in her seat and push her almost black hair behind her ears.

She handed the book back to him and pulled out an even smaller one from the pocket without the letter in it. "I write…poetry." She cautiously handed him the book, frayed edges and all and watched him read each one. Various expressions crossed over the man's face. Happiness, sorrow, pain, and some others Jade couldn't recognize at the time.

Steve handed her back the small book with a solemn expression. "They're beautiful Jade. How can one small girl build up so much emotion?"

Jade put it back into her jean pocket. "Thank you, and I'm not _that _small," but even Jade knew that was a lie.

"Are you kidding? That's the first thing I noticed about you. Oh and the fact that you were jumping, screaming, and waving your hands around like a psychopath." Jade scoffed and lightly hit his arm.

"Well you certainly know how to charm a woman, don't you?" The laughing continued until another figure sat down at their table in a white coat. Jade instantly recognized him, but what she didn't know was that Steve did too.

"Good afternoon Dr. Erskine," Jade smiled politely.

"Gould afta-noon Jade."

Steve was very, very confused. How did these two know each other? "Whoa, wait! How-how do you guys know each other?" He echoed his own thoughts.

Jade was puzzled by his question. Did it really matter? "Dr. Erskine was the one to enlist me."

"What a coincidence! He enlisted me too." He didn't say it accusingly. Though he _knew _something was up.

"Both of us under a project too. Dr. Erskine, what's going on?"

The good doctor sighed and chuckled to himself. "I guess you 'ave vigured out my zecret. Vell, it vasn't veally a zecret, you'd find out eventually. Az I told you bevore Jade, I need a male test subject and a female test subject. Meet your new co-test subject." Both of them looked at each other in shock. Jade thought for a moment before coming to a conclusion: she would have a friend that understood the operation she went through. And she was happy it was Steve.

Steve thought about it too. If this operation required a woman that was brave and a fighter, Jade was definitely the one. He, personally, couldn't have picked a better candidate.

"'Ere," Dr. Erskine slid two folders to them. They each took one. It had bold, read letters stamped across it labeling it: **TOP SECRET.** "Zis iz a file on zee operation. Do _not _share zis vith anyvone but each other." The German scientist left the table to proceed with the days activities. The two soldiers shared a quick glance and once both had nodded, they opened up their folders.

"Operation: Rebirth," Steve whispered.

"Super soldier."

"Serum by injection."

"Enhanced strength."

"Enhanced speed,"

"Increased metabolism."

"High immune system."

"The perfect soldier," the said at the same time. Jade hoped they wouldn't start doing that more often. Suddenly, Steve's faced drained of all color and then an enormously deep red blush crept over his face.

"What's wrong Steve?" Jade asked, her voice laced with concern.

"Well, I think that…umm…the folders were, uh, separated and made specifically for each one of us. And I, uh, I think I picked up yours." He quickly swapped their folders. Jade opened up her new one and scanned it over for any differences. But there weren't any…

Except for one page. It wasn't in the other folder. And it was clearly meant for Jade. "Oh Steve, stop being a baby. It just talks about how the serum will change around my cycle to make a better soldier. The don't want me bleeding on the battle-"

Steve waved his arms to stop her. "Stop, stop, stop! Let's just not talk about that."

Jade laughed, "Okay we'll stop talking about it!" They continued to laugh and casually chat, asking questions to get to know each other better. Simple things like:

"When were you born?"

"July 4th, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, you?"

"You share your birthday with America's birthday? Whoa, well I was born on April 9th, 1921 in Queens, New York. Small world, huh? I've been to Brooklyn a few times."

"If my history classes serve me right, I believe you share you birthday with the official ending of the Civil War, the day that brought our great nation back together."

Jade smiled widely, "You make my birthday sound so special."

"Well it is," Steve said matter-of-factly. Jade blushed a little. "Do you like baseball?"

Jade thought about this. Would her answer make her seem weird? Oh well, he probably already thought she was. "Yeah, my brother Jasper and I used to play catch a half hour before we listened to the game. It was like our good luck charm. Jasper is a huge Dodgers fan." She chuckled to herself. Her parents would never buy her a glove of her own. She had to use Jacob's and it was _way _too big.

"No way! I love the Dodgers. I'll have to meet your brother sometime." Jade smiled again and nodded.

"Yeah," she looked at her watch and sighed. "Well I've got to go get my hair chopped off. Apparently it's 'too long.' See you later, Brooklyn."

Steve grinned, "Yeah, yeah, skedaddle Queens. I'll see you at training tomorrow." Jade waved, she liked her new nickname.

* * *

Jade tapped her feet impatiently. The barber was off in a corner arguing with an office worker as she sat in the chair waiting.

"_I've never cut a woman's hair before. Let alone one that's a soldier! I don't know how short!"_

_The lady with bright red lipstick rolled her eyes. "It's simple, cut it short enough so it doesn't get in the way but long enough so she still looks like a lady. That Doctor Erskine fellow said she's supposed to be a female representing America, so go from there!" _

He finally (and reluctantly) walked over. As he raised the scissors she hissed out, "Cut my hair anywhere above my shoulders and you'll find it awfully hard to have children for a while." He gulped and went on with the haircut.

* * *

After Jade got her hair cut and mailed that letter, she looked at herself in her bathroom mirror. Her precious hair that flowed to her waist was now unevenly chopped to around her armpits. She took care of that with a rusty pair of scissors and now it was nice, even, and straight.

She had to admit it didn't look half bad.

It looked healthier and shinier with soft, natural waves. So far things were going well. There was now someone she could talk to. And training started tomorrow. Things could only get better.

Right.

* * *

**A/N: Ah and there it is. They seem to be becoming better friends, eh? Thanks for reading and please review. (No flame please!) Ciao!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey guys...(stands there awkwardly looking around) How ya been lately?...AAhhhhh I know it's been way too long but I think I've got some pretty good excuses. I got sick for awhile. Like I stayed in bed most of the time. When I got better I had to help out my mom and sister because the latter is having a baby so we've been getting things ready for her baby shower. Plus I've got orientation coming up so I've been getting ready. They're not the best of excuses but in the end here is the next chapter. It's my longest one EVER! So that's an extra treat. **

**Omg we get to see the feisty side of Jade. Here's the thing though...she's not a real mean person. So when she tries to be, it doesn't turn out too well. You'll see!**

**Guys! The reviews! Holy cow I love you guys! Well here we go and please review!**

**To my reviewers:**

**TA-twinArmageddons: Well he may be in his comfort zone now, but just wait until he starts to develop feelings for her. Mwuahahahahaha! I love awkwardness :3 Thanks and sorry for the wait!**

**TenebrisSagittarius: Lol thanks, I had been planning that little awkward moment for a while and I just couldn't help but put it in! Thanks!**

**DarkRulerKida: xD I just loved the last chapter. Thank you so much!**

**Ali: Thanks, my writer's block sucked but it ended eventually. Thanks for the advice, I'll be sure to keep my copy of the movie nearby. Oh wait, I already do that! Lol Sorry for such a long wait. Life's been hectic lately! Thanks again!**

**Emberscar: Thanks! The letters will be important especially since you couldn't just call your loved one on cell phone while they were away. Couldn't email them either! So writing letters was one of your only ways to communicate and I plan to keep them going for the story to show the importance of them during WWII. Ahh! I get so aggravated writing these stupid men because of the way they treat her. I do NOT want to make them all nice though. Because that would just be OOC for the time period. There's a big surprise with Jade and her feisty side this chapter though! Thank you, Jade appreciates the love. Without anyone reading about how unique she is, she would still be just an idea in my head. Now she's come to life! Oops, I'm sorry, I'm rambling! Ignore me! Sorry for the wait!**

**Carlypso: Thanks so much!**

**MissLizziebeth: Thank you so much. Actually, whatever happens to Jade depends on if I do a sequel or not. But that's all I'll say! Good guess with the name but that will be revieled soon! Thanks!**

**Guest: Thanks so much! Sorry for the wait!**

**Duck-Ranger: Thanks so much! Oh Steve, you and your awkwardness! XD Sorry for the wait!**

**luneara eclipse: Thanks, her personality is exactly what I wanted...totally abnormal! Thanks so much and sorry for the wait.**

**Guest: Thanks! I was surprised that there wasn't any other stories I saw that were like this. So I had to write it!**

**Areus Bookworm: Thank you so much. You are I believe the second or third person to guess her name! It's one of the most obvious but it just works! Sorry for the wait!**

**AleiaJones8299: Thanks so much! Sorry for the long wait!**

**Nancy: Thank you and your welcome, I was hoping at least a couple people would like this story and then there's all these favorites, alerts, and reviews, and I was like 'This an important reason to do this...for the fans!' I totally get what you're talking about with the ending. I have two endings set up. One will be used if the ending is truly the end. The other will be used if I do a sequel. So we'll see where it goes. Thanks so much for the review, love, and suggestions. Sorry for the wait!**

**Shaybo27: Thank you so much. Her standing out is exactly what I want! Thanks!**

**maruaderlove: Thanks so much. Yay awesome guess with the name 'wink, wink'**

**Avis11: Thank you so much! I am not sure if I will be continuing on into the Avengers as a sequel yet. But I've got time! Sorry for the wait!**

**aandm20: Thanks so much!**

**Day Star Angel: Thanks, sorry for the wait!**

**Cara Tala: Thanks so much and I know right? I like OC/Steve stories but it's just so hard to find them! I will not give up on this story!**

**dbzfan102: Thanks! Sorry for the wait.**

**Musicman2013: Thanks. I blame all spelling errors on my poor typing skills lol I promise I know how to spell, I'm just not too good with typing things out. Then when I review it, my eyes skip right over mistakes sometimes. Thanks so much!**

**Whew! Finally! That was a LOT of reviews! AND I LOVED EVERY SINGLE ONE! You guys are awesome! Not to be greedy but, REVIEW...please :D**

* * *

Chapter 5: Training Part 1

"_**Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory." –General George Patton**_

Jade woke up bright and early the next day to the sound of a stereotypical bugle horn. She yawned and stretched until she heard cracks and pops. There was maybe ten minutes for her to get ready. That included shower, hair, make up-

No…wait.

_No make up, _she thought to herself. _And I only need to dry my hair. _It was definitely different. For years, Jade was used to drying her hair and styling it to perfect curls. That was usually done by a number of curlers set overnight. Life in the army would be different though. It would be dried and pulled back into a ponytail, and no chiffon ribbons to tie it up either. Just a plain, old rubber band.

Reluctantly, Jade peeled the thin blankets from her body that barely kept her warm in the abnormally cold cabin. Jade had slept in an oversized t-shirt and cotton shorts rather than the usual night gown. The t-shirt was _very _comfortable. The shorts however were a little different and would take some time to get used to.

She made her way to the cramped bathroom and blasted the cold water. Jade stripped off her pajamas. In the mirror, staring back at her was a pale, pale girl. That was normal for her. She had always been short, too skinny, and pale with hair so dark it made her even _more _pale. Plus to make matters worse, whenever she let Allison do her make up, she'd end up wearing bright red lipstick to make her skin look like a piece of paper. Jade's mother had noticed this and told Allison (as kindly as possible) that she was no longer allowed to give Jade makeovers.

She stepped into the cold water as shivers coursed threw her spine. It was the kind of cold that hit you so hard that it hurt. The friction of the drops against her skin made it almost seem hot. It woke her up in the short five minutes she was under the water. She found it much easier and quicker to wash her hair due to its now easier length. Jade sighed heavily against the liquid pellets and turned the knob, banishing the water back into its pipe prison.

Stepping out of the shower carefully in order to not slip and fall, Jade dried off rapidly and dressed in her training uniform. It consisted of a fitted white t-shirt, a muted green long sleeved button up, some regular green cargo pants that tucked inside her combat boots, and dog tags with her name on them. Not to mention the helmet that was too heavy on her head. She picked up the green helmet and held it to her side. Her destination for now would be the mess hall. After lunch the day before, Jade had looked forward to eating dinner with Steve. He was a wonderful person to talk to. It was nice to have a friend at the camp, especially one that was going through the same thing as you. Their conversations had been full of more questions about each other. Swapping storied became one of their favorite things to do while enjoying each other's company. They varied from childhood memories to goals for the future.

They had read over the files once more. Turns out they weren't the only ones being considered for the operation. Steve's competition consisted of buff men with huge egos. Dr. Erskine truly thought Steve was their best choice. But the United States military wanted someone with muscle power and a brain the size of a pea pod.

In Jade's case, it was different. Her competition was not of the same gender as her. The military officers had the idea that men will always be the only type of soldier. It was just _another _reason for her to prove she was a good as (or maybe even better than) the men of this camp and she would take advantage of the _fully._

She stretched and yawned once more before making her way to the mess hall. The stares from her fellow soldiers had yet to cease. If anything, they intensified. Now there were expressions of 'you're still here?' as well.

She walked past people training: they started.

Jade walked into the dining hall: they stared.

The dark brunette got into line: even the _servers _stared.

She sat at her table with Steve: everyone star at both of them.

Needless to say the staring was becoming incredibly annoying.

"Do you think they'll ever stop?" She asked him. Steve thought for a moment as he swallowed his food. The rations at the camp were some of the best out there. Though foods still consisted of mainly non perishables like beans, flour, oatmeal, instant mashed potatoes, all the things Jade used to donate with her family.

"Uh…no, no I don't. But you've just got to learn to live with it. Sure, they'll still be staring at us but after awhile you'll hardly even notice 'em!" He smiled brightly. His grin stretched across his whole face and it made Jade laugh lightly.

"Well, on a less depressing subject-I hope-how's Bucky been lately?" Steve's smile dropped a little and became more sad. Jade hoped nothing bad happened to the handsome soldier she had only met once.

"I haven't heard from him in awhile actually. He was shipped out to London with the 107th the day after we met you. You know, the day you were jumping…screaming…and oh what was it?" He pondered jokingly, scratching his chin in thought.

"No, don't do it!" She pleaded while putting her face in her hands.

"Oh yeah, waving your hands around wildly. I think that's it." He laughed and received a punch to the arm. "Ow, that hurt!"

"You're never going to let that go are you?" The twenty-one year old girl tried her best to sound angry, but she was betrayed by her lips quickly twitching up into a smile.

"You have to admit that it was funny seeing a dame-"

"Don't. Call me a dame!" She snapped at him suddenly. Steve jumped back a little. Her outburst was in an angry, clipped tone, something that Jade never used. He watched her take a deep breath and when she spoke again, her tone was much calmer. "I-I'm sorry. I just…I just don't like being called a dame. That's a word to describe a girl who depends on a man to have any kind of life. Being called a dame makes me feel weak and-and,"

"Hey, I get it," Steve interrupted. "I won't call you the'd' word anymore." They both chuckled and then ate in a comfortable silence until another man came up and slapped Steve's back in a "friendly gesture."

"Hi there shrimp. Me and my friends were wondering what they're gonna use you for on the battlefield. Bait?" His two friends laughed behind him. The guy had a short blonde buzz cut and seemed like the kind of guy Steve hated. A bully.

Jade wasn't much of an insult kind of person. But this guy made her angry, so she might as well try, no matter how bad it would sound. "And what are you? The moron who came up with that ridiculous plan?" The man and his friends stared at the brunette woman with utter confusion. Was that supposed to be an insult? Sensing this Jade set down her spoon, patted her lips with a napkin with as much lady like-ness that she could muster. "Well I'm just saying that if you send out one man to lure the enemy out, he'd be picked off by a sniper because the Nazis would be smart enough _not _to send their own out. Especially since German education has such high standards. Clearly unlike wherever _you're _from." Steve tried to suppress a laugh. Finally, score one for Jade.

"Did-did you just call me stupid?" The guy asked, seeming appalled.

Jade smirked. "Oh you actually understood that! I was wondering if even a meat-head like you with an IQ lower than gas prices would understand that." Jade smiled sweetly and Steve finally broke. He erupted into laughter and even the 'meat-head's' friends chuckled.

"Listen princess," Jade gritted her teeth, "What does a dame like you-" Jade snapped.

"What did you call me?" Jade looked very, very angry. The man stood there frozen. It was almost scary.

"Uh, um…dame?" It came out as a squeak. She stood up from her seat as her fingers curled up into fists. Before she even knew it, Jade's fist connected with the bully's face, more specifically his eye and partial cheek. It probably hurt her more than him, but he seemed like he was in pain.

"Don't! Call me! A dame!" She spat out angrily. The man scrambled back up to his feet and quickly left. Meanwhile Steve was sitting there, mouth wide open. "What?"

"You just called him stupid _twice, _wrapped it in a nice little package of logic to make him feel even more stupid, and then you punched him!" Jade smiled sheepishly and sat back down on the bench.

"I've never been a real mean person. So my insults usually tend to come out as a jumble of all kinds of things. I figured he wouldn't understand half of what I said and that would work. I truly suck at throwing jabs at people. As for the punch, well, I'm not really sure…where that came from. Felt good though."

"Now I know why to never call you a dame," Steve joked, though he was actually serious.

"And you remember that Brooklyn."

* * *

They were told to get into a straight line. Compared to the others in line, they looked like children. Steve's helmet was too large for him. Jade's boots were too large. But they stood straight and tall ready to begin their training. The rest of the group stood around whispering until they heard a female voice yell, "Recruits, attention!" Everyone snapped into perfect posture, something Jade found rather comfortable.

A woman with short and curled chestnut brown hair walked up to face them. She had red lipstick on and a formal uniform. A soldier came walking up behind her with a bin full of clipboards.

"Gentlemen," she spotted Jade amongst the group, "And ladies…I'm Agent Carter. I supervise all operations for this division." She slowly made her way down the line. Agent Carter stopped for a moment when she got to Jade, but continued on.

"What's with the accent Queen Victoria?" It was the man from earlier, now sporting a _lovely _black eye. "I thought I was signing up for the U.S. Army?" Jade's anger flared up once more.

"Hey Sir Prance-A-Lot, at least her accent is enjoyable," she piped in while crossing her arms. "While yours is just making our heads hurt. So why don't you just shut ya yap!" The Queens side of her was coming out. "Or I can always give you a black eye to match the other one!" The man seemed to step away a little.

"What's your name soldier?" Jade worried it was her Agent Carter was talking to, but the British woman's attention was directed directly towards the man.

"Gilmore Hodge, Your Majesty," he said smartly.

"Step forward Hodge," she commanded. He did as he was ordered to while looking at his friends and laughing. "Put you're right foot forward Hodge." He did as was told once more.

The other soldier started handing out the clipboards. "Are we dancing? Cause I got a few moves I know you'll like." Hodge said slyly. Jade was disgusted and apparently Agent Carter was too because she punched him…_hard. _He was knocked to the ground just as an older man stepped out of a jeep.

"Agent Carter," The agent seemed happy with herself as she turned around with an 'hmm.'

"Colonel Phillips," She addressed the older man.

"I can see you're breaking in the candidates." The colonel said as he walked up closer to Hodge. "That's good! Get your ass out of that dirt and stand in line until someone calls your attention and tells you what to do."

Hodge scrambled to his feet much like earlier that day and sniffed. Only to wince at the pain. "Yes sir!" He yelled, only to wince again.

Colonel Phillips licked his lips before continuing on. "General Patton has said that wars are fought with weapons but they are won by men. We are going to win this war because we have the best…men." He faltered a little at the sight of Steve and Jade but then continued.

"And because they're gonna get better. Much better. The strategic Scientific Reserve is an allied effort made up of the best minds in the free world. Our goal is to create the best army in history. But every army starts with one man." He turned to face the recruits. "At the end of this week we will choose that man and possibly another." Jade cringed at the word _possibly. _"They will be the first in a new breed of super-soldiers. And they...will personally escort Adolf Hitler to the gates of Hell."

* * *

They were escorted over to a field where the sun blazed down on them. It was hot. And it was only going to get hotter. Every single recruit around Jade removed their green button-up. Was it a good idea for her to lose the long sleeve shirt too? And then she noticed Agent Carter standing a little bit in front of her and looking right at her. The chestnut haired women had a twinkle in her eyes and a slight smile as she walked up to Jade.

"Well it's nice to see another woman with some guts. I'm Agent Peggy Carter." She held out her hand. Jade quickly shook it and started to unbutton her shirt.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Jade Callaway." Agent Carter smiled.

"I'll be watching you Callaway." And then she walked away. Jade smiled and took off her green shirt which she tied it around her waist. Then she heard something fall. On the ground were her brand new dog tags. Her most prized possession at this camp. Jade smiled even wider as she replaced them back around her neck.

"Alright ladies," Agent Carter called out. "Push ups! Let's start with oh…a hundred. Work our way from there. And Callaway!" Jade looked up as she was getting into position.

"Yes ma'am?"

"I hope you don't expect to do any girly push ups." Agent Carter crossed her arms expectantly, but Jade only smiled as she pushed herself up to get ready.

"Wasn't planning on it ma'am." The Brit smiled.

"Good. Alright ladies. Down!" In unison, the recruits dropped to the ground. "Up!" They all pushed themselves back up. This went on for what seemed like forever. All of Jade's muscles screamed in burning agony. Sweat dripped from every pour. Her knees were going weak.

And she loved it.

Because she was keeping up with every man around her. Well except for Steve. Poor guy was struggling to lift up his own weight. "Come on ladies! My grandmother has more life in her…God rest her soul." There was a collective share of chuckles. "Oh for God's sake the tiny _girl _is doing better than you men. How does that help your egos? Up, up, jumping jacks." Jade eagerly stood up and continued on with the next exercise. Steve was flapping his arms around tiredly, wondering how Jade was actually doing so well.

Over by one of the trucks, Dr. Erskine and Colonel Phillips were watching their recruits with interest. "You're not really thinking about picking Rogers, are you?" Colonel Phillips asked the scientist skeptically.

"I am vore zan just zinking about it. He iz zee clear choice." Dr. Erskine replied matter of factly.

"When you brought a ninety pound asthmatic onto my army base, I let it slide. I thought what the hell? Maybe he'll be useful to you, like a gerbil. I never thought you'd _pick _him."

Dr. Erskine was confident in his two choices of Steven and Jade. They had all the characteristics needed. They were smart, genuinely nice people, and believed in doing things for the right reasons. Their egos were also not the size of a hot air balloon.

"Stick a needle in his arm and it's gonna go right through him. "They both glanced over at the struggling skinny blonde. He looked about ready to die. "Look at that! He's making me cry!"

"I am lookingz vor qualitiez bevond zee physical."

"Do you know how long it took to set up this project?"

"Yez, I know."

"And all the groveling I had to do in front of senator 'what's his name'?"

"I know, I am vell avare ov your efvorts."

"Then throw me a bone! Hodge passed every test we gave him. He's big, he's fast he _obeys orders._ He's a soldier."

"He's a bully," Dr. Erskine said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"You don't win wars with _niceness, _doctor." Colonel Phillips turned around to the truck and pulled out a dummy grenade. This would prove that Rogers was _not _the right choice. "You win war with guys." He pulled the pin and threw it out into the field of recruits. "Grenade!" He shouted. Both of the men watched as all but Rogers fled the area. He actually _threw _himself onto it. Agent Cart started walking towards him with that girl, Callaway.

"Get away!" Rogers shouted. "Get back!" Everyone waited and once nothing happened, someone shouted,

"It's a dummy grenade." The soldier sounded almost annoyed. Colonel Phillips sighed. Steve looked up at the two of them.

"Is this a test?"

Erskine looked to his military friend with a knowing grin. "He's still skinny."

* * *

The rope wall was large, intimidating, and down right dangerous looking. It was almost as tall as a building with three ropes to climb. The rules were simple: If you fell you went back to the end of the line. If you got to the top, you went back to the end of the line. If you got to the top three consecutive times, you were done. Once everyone completed their three turns, the group could go to lunch. But if someone wanted to go for four and got it, the group could go to lunch and then they had the day off. But if they failed, the group went without lunch.

It was pure cruelty.

"Come on girls! Lunch will not be there forever!" Jade groaned at Agent Carter's taunting. She had just finished her second time around and was making her way back to the end of the line when Steve came jogging up next to her.

"How's it going Steve?" She asked even though the answer was clear. He was panting hard and gasping for air. "Don't you have asthma?"

"Yeah I've got my inhaler with me. I just finished my first round." Jade stared at him completely dumb founded.

"Only your first? I'm on my third! What'd you do, skip rope climbing in gym class?" He didn't answer which probably meant yes. They both got back in line and soon Hodge came up behind Jade.

When her turn came she heard behind her, "Don't worry hun, I'll be here if you fall." She bottled up her anger and started to climb the rope. Making it to the top was easy. She looked down to see Hodge _actually _struggling. He was almost to the top, but was losing his grip. Jade rolled her eyes and stuck out her hand. Hodge looked at it suspiciously until she thrust her hand out again and he took it. "Why are you helping me?" He asked.

"Because on the battlefield, you are not my enemy. We may not get along, but you're still my ally in war."

"You know, you're pretty tough…for a dame." Gilmore Hodge went to sleep that night with a broken nose from one girl and two black eyes from another.

Once again, Colonel Phillips and Dr. Erskine stood by one another watching the recruits climb ropes. "You honestly think Callaway should be your other recruit."

Dr. Erskine sighed quietly. "Az I zaid bevore, I know she iz zee best choice." They watched the girl in question run back down the wall to the end of the line for the second time.

Colonel Phillips rested his palm across his forehead. "She's a girl!"

"You don't honestly zink zat men vill alvays be zee only onez to fight, do you? Vomen vill come along veady to go to var and vee mine as vell start now. She has all zee characteristics I am looking vor. She has heart, look!" He pointed over to the climbing wall where Jade was helping Hodge up, despite their differences. The two exchanged words, but only one word was recognizable, 'dame.' "Uh oh," Dr. Erskine muttered quietly.

"What?" Colonel Phillips asked him worriedly.

"Jade doez not like to be called a dame. It makez her feel…veak. Dis vill not end vell." By the end of his sentence, Jade punched her fellow soldier's good eye. That would hurt in the morning. Scratch that...that would hurt _now._

"She's a tough one I'll giver her that, but as _I _said before we don't win wars by being nice. We win them by having guys. Just because she punched a guy does not mean she has guts."

Steve had been the last to finish, but Jade waited patiently for him at the top.

"So that's all of you. You're dismissed for lunch unless one of you would like to go for one more. Anyone?" The group shuffled their feet and looked at each other. They all wanted someone to do it, but they didn't want to do it themselves. "Anyone? No one? No one's got guts? Alright fine, be back-"

"I'll do it sir," A squeaky voice chirped. Jade stepped forward, surprising everyone by volunteering to do it. Her arms and legs felt like jelly, but she _had _to do it.

"Hey girly, don't ruin our chance for lunch. You screw it up and I swear…" One guy shouted.

"Jade, are you sure?" Steve gently held her elbow to stop her.

"Yeah," she answered half-confidently. "Just promise you'll be there to catch me if I fall." He nodded and smiled kindly.

"Callaway, would you stop making out with your boyfriend and get on with it?" Both Steve and Jade blushed deeply at the Colonel's comment and the latter of the two rushed over to the ropes while keeping her head down. The rope was slick with sweat. Jade couldn't get a grip on them. She needed gloves or something. An idea came to mind. Jade ripped off some of the fabric of her white t-shirt and wrapped it around her hands, tying them at her knuckles. Then she untied her green shirt from her waist and buttoned it back up.

"Mine as well not even try Callaway!" The Lieutenant with them yelled to her. "No ones climbed that four times in a row in ten years! You mess this up and you'll have a whole group of recruits ready to kick your ass! Whether you're girl or not!" She ignored him and began to climb for the fourth time. Each step or move of a hand was agony. You'd think that only four times wouldn't be that bad, but the wall was incredibly tall and steep. She felt like falling and just giving up…

"Come on Jade, you can do it!" Steve. Steve was encouraging her. So Jade kept going and when she got to the top, she saw dozens of jaws drop. She dropped back down and ran over to Steve who picked her up and spun her around. "Wow, I've never been able to do that to a woman before."

Jade laughed. "That's because you couldn't find a girl that weighed less than you before!"

Dr. Erskine looked over at Colonel Phillips with another smile. "She still wears make up."

* * *

Lunch and dinner was uneventful. The only good part was when mail came around and a letter was dropped off in front of her. She nestled into her bed, turned on her flashlight, and opened up the letter that was obviously from Jasper. That was clearly marked by the smiley face next to her name that had its tongue sticking out…

_Dear Jade,_

_ It's good to know you weren't kidnapped by crazy Nazis or something. Though I must say that getting into the Army is quite a surprise. I don't know who's more crazy, you for signing up, or them for enlisting you. Aw, you know I love you big sis. You're too serious though. Your entire letter, I thought it was some sort of last goodbye, it was so depressing. No offense. I'm proud of you though. Dad would have been too. _

_Don't worry about mom, I told her you went off to volunteer for the Red Cross. She thinks that's amazing. Says (and I quote) "It's so lovely that she's found a way to help serve our great nation without getting involved in all that fighting non-sense." _

_As for the separation, I don't know what to say. I think you should have expected that. You're brand new there, so I can only advise that you expect to be treated differently. Not everyone can be as amazing as your younger brother. Listen to me, sounding so wise and responsible. What has this world done to me?_

_I always saw you as my friend to play catch with, not a prissy girl. That's your greatest trait about you. So don't change. Yes, I remember the stupid garden gnome. I got grounded for three weeks because of that. You're lucky I love you. _

_I expect to hear from you soon. Go get 'em soldier._

_With love and all that mushy stuff,_

_Jasper_

_P.S. Try to win that war soon. I'm getting sick of rations. Last night's dinner consisted of chicken broth and one roll. No not chicken cooked in a broth with spices and some rolls. We had just chicken broth and each of us got a single roll…please come home soon._

_And safe._

* * *

**A/N: So Sorry for such a long wait! But I'll try and update as soon as I can!**

**Quick Note: Gas prices in 1942 was 19 cents per gallon! Ohh the economy!**

**Thanks, reviews are love! Ciao!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: *Tapes sign to wall that says 'bang head here.' Proceeds with instructions.* Ugh! I am so sorry you guys! This took me way to long to update and it's not fair to my wonderful, forgiving readers. :D But OMG you guys, 71 reviews! I love you guys so much! This chapter should have been up weeks ago but school started back up and I've been super super busy.**

**I've decided to just save room and reply to reviews via PM. All guest reviews will be replied to in the usual way though!**

**Reviews:**

**Guest: Thanks so much, sorry for the long wait.**

**capi: Thanks so much, I do not plan on ever giving up on this story. I WILL continue with it.**

**Ali: Thanks so much! 19 cents, umm now that just shows how bad our economy really is! Lol Thanks so much and sorry for such a long wait!**

**Emily: Thanks so much. Lol you gotta keep humour in these kind of stories or else it gets depressing! Sorry for the wait.**

**SheCap: Thanks so much. Congrats on being my official 65th reviewer, I thank you dearly! I totally get what your saying about the mary sue thing. Other than her temper, he fatal flaw is that she doesn't think before she acts. She thinks that she's invincible and that she can just jump into any situation. I know it's hard to see, but there were a few times. It will become more noticeble once time goes on. thanks for pointing that out though! Thanks!**

**Dreamforever: Thanks, sorry for the wait!**

**thanks for all the reviews guys! Ok so I don't really like this chapter. It's not my best but it will do. Enjoy and review! P.S. There is a little Jade/Steve moment in here. It's just to show their relationship. It does not meant that either one of them like each other...yet.**

* * *

Chapter 6: They're A Team

"_**Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much"-Helen Keller**_

When the bugle horn rang its classic tune the next morning, Jade did _not _want to get up. No, she _refused _to get up. Every single muscle was sore and aching. It was too early, and she felt like throwing up at the same time as banging her head against the wall. Summarized together, Jade was not feeling up to the day. Yet she had to do it. She had to do it for her country, but mainly she had to do it for herself.

It was still about protecting her country, that was for sure, but now she was doing this for herself too. Jade wanted the satisfaction of keeping everyone safe _and _knowing she was just as good as the men. Oh yes, it sounded somewhat selfish, but there were a lot more selfish people out there. Some didn't even care about the war. Steve had told her about the guy he had gotten into that fight with. The man only cared about his stupid movie. He couldn't be bothered with a (very) short clip about the war efforts. Much sarcasm implied.

Jade still did not want to get up, but now she only had maybe five minutes to get ready. So she set off to start her morning routine.

Steve had woken up right on schedule. His routine was simple: shower, dress, then off to breakfast with Jade. He was sore this morning; that was for sure. His asthma had, surprising, not made an appearance yesterday. Though he kept his inhaler close by just in case. So after getting ready for the day, Steve decided that he would meet Jade at her bunk so they could walk to breakfast together. It was very nice to know someone at this camp that didn't think he was skinny, scrawny, and useless.

Walking down the dirt and gravel road, Steve kicked a pebble with his shoe. Yesterday was quite eventful. He had met the striking Peggy Carter. What a doll she was. Peggy had pretty chestnut hair that fell to her shoulders in the classic curls with red lipstick, something that was very popular with the women these days. Except Jade though, she never wore bright red lipstick. It wouldn't suit her…or at least that's what he guessed. Steve wasn't too great with women or anything they wore or even talked about.

Peggy was courageous and independent. And man, could she pack a punch! The way Hodge had treated her had simply infuriated him, just like it had when Hodge treated Jade similarly. A gentleman should never treat a lady with so much disrespect. It's one of the things his Irish immigrant parents taught him when he was young. Being a gentleman wasn't just the right thing to do; it's something to be proud of.

Reaching the bunk, Steve knocked on the door. A muffled, "Come in!" Was heard from inside. Steve turned the knob on the unlocked door and walked inside to see Jade standing in front of her bathroom mirror. Jade was twisting her torso to view different angles of herself. Every once in a while she would scrunch up her nose in thought. Jade glanced over at her visitor for a moment before going back to the mirror and straightening her green shirt. "Hello Steve, I'll be ready in just a second."

Steve stuffed his hands into his pockets and patiently rolled his feet back and forth, the floor boards making an awkward and annoying squeak. Every once in a while he would glance up to look at Jade. She was fixing her hair, parting it different ways. Then scrunching her face again, "What are you doing Queens? You're at boot camp, why are you so concerned about you looks?"

Jade stopped fidgeting for a moment. She froze in her spot in front of the mirror before turning back to look at Steve. They stood in silence while Jade began to twist a lock of hair around her finger. She opened her mouth, attempting to say something, and then closed it again. She bit her lower lip in anxiety and sighed heavily while still twisting the hair. "Steve…do…do you think I'm pretty?" She asked in a small voice.

Steve's jaw literally dropped. He blinked rapidly, trying to process what the woman had said. He cocked his head to the side in a confused manor, "Why are you asking me that Jade?" No…no, no, no, she wasn't supposed to ask him those kinds of questions. He was awkward with woman, he was with Jade at first, hence running into her. But then after they got to know each other better, she was no longer a pretty dame who actually noticed him. She was one of his best friends; she was no longer just a woman anymore. Jade was a soldier. He was so _normal _around her because he saw her as a friend, one of the guys. (Was that a good thing? Because Steve didn't know, who she be offended? Better not say that out loud.) Now this question just ruined it. Now he had to tell her if she was _pretty! _

"Because I want to know, so…am I pretty?"

Steve stared at her; well of course she was pretty. An abnormal pretty though, she had wavy dark hair falling past her shoulders with those gentle green, almond shaped eyes that could turn fierce in a matter of seconds. Flattering, high cheekbones and a small nose that just looked perfect where it was. She was skinnier and paler than most women though. It wasn't bad, she probably would've looked better with tanner skin and curves though. And full pink lips that were slightly chapped from the conditions at the camp…whoa wait! Where was this coming from? He wasn't supposed to be thinking about her this way! She was his second best friend (next to Bucky of course) and you don't just go rattling off your best friend's best features! _Shake it off Steve, just answer the question, _he though to himself.

"Steve, Earth to Steve?" Jade was looking at him, clearly expecting an answer. She didn't know why she had asked him. It was a sudden thing, something she was just thinking about while looking in her mirror. She had been told she was pretty by several people. There were her parents and brothers of course but they didn't really count. Her couple friends that she spent time with sometimes would tell her how lucky she was to get such 'naturally beautiful hair,' and 'gorgeous features.' Their words were always hollow though. There was the occasional boyfriend in high school and the normal date maybe every other weekend, not to mention Howard. Though if he did say she was pretty, he'd find a way to compliment himself in the same sentence.

"Uh…well…God Jade! What kind of question is that? Of course you're pretty!" He was blushing bright red now, from cheeks to ears.

"Really?"

Steve resisted the urge to roll his eyes. She seemed just too innocent. "Y-yes Jade. You're…you're beautiful." He said with a small sigh. He was her friend, he couldn't just insult her. And she really was beautiful, but that was something anyone could point out. Jade seemed somewhat surprised with his answer. She ended up running across the small room and embracing Steve in a fierce hug.

"You're one of the best friends I've ever had." She whispered softly.

"Now tell me the truth Jade, why would you ask if you're pretty?" Jade sighed this time and pulled back so she could sit on her bed. She fisted her hands and propped her elbows up on her knees.

"I was looking in the mirror. It was simple really, just combing my hair, when I noticed a small little…_blemish_…right here." She pointed to a spot on the right side of her forehead. There was a tiny bump there, barely noticeable unless you were told about it. "And then I noticed some split ends. And then I kept noticing little flaws. And then big flaws! That got me thinking; I'm not really that pretty, am I? Compared to girls like my sister-in-law or-or my brother's girlfriend I'm not even close to beautiful!"

Steve internally sighed. She sure picked a random time to ask that question. "Jade, like I said before, you really are beautiful. Don't doubt yourself. But I'm really not the person you should ask about these things, okay? So just…stick to baseball!" Steve was still blushing a bright red. This made Jade laugh a little bit as she got up. The now smiling brunette walked to the door and gestured for her red friend to follow her as she walked outside.

* * *

"Okay ladies!" Agent Peggy Carter shouted in her rich British accent. "We're going to go on a nice, little jog!" Turns out it wasn't just a "little jog." It was a run around a dirt road in the camp that went on for eight miles. And by "we" Agent Carter meant the troops would run and she and the Lieutenant would ride in a Jeep while another officer drove them. Slackers.

Steve was falling way behind the rest of them. It was almost sad. Of course it didn't help that they had to carry their backpacks with them. Jade kept a leisurely pace so she didn't tire herself out. She was halfway in between Steve and the rest of the troops, breathing heavily. This wasn't good for her. She didn't go for jogs…ever. Now she was going for eight miles…eight miles! It was ridiculous. Finally they stopped in front of the camp flag to take a very short rest after being screamed at for them to "move!"

The lieutenant pointed up at the flag pole while trying to catch his breath. He had started jogging with them at one point, but only to yell at them to go faster. "That flag means we are only at the halfway point!" Jade groaned mentally. Another four miles of hell to go through. "The first man that brings it to me gets to ride back with Agent Carter. Now move!" Everyone but Jade and Steve moved to the flagpole. They would get trampled easily since all the other troops were scrambling to get up the flagpole. A person would start to climb, get a couple feet off the ground, and the fall back down. That's when someone else would try. "That's all you got? Get up there Hodge!" The officer yelled as the soldier tried to climb up the pole to the flag, but he fell back down. "Nobody's got that flag in seventeen years!" He stated looking quite smug. "Now fall back in line! C'mon, fall in; let's go...get back into formation."

The group made their way back to the road, but not before Steve got Jade's attention. She saw him point over at the pole, but it wasn't just the pole he was pointing at. It was the pin holding the pole up. Jade cocked her head in confusion for a moment before realizing what was going on through his head and she smiled. With a brief nod, they both walked over to the flag pole. "Rogers! Callaway! I said fall in!" Ignoring the officer, Steve pulled out the pin and yanked out the bar that ran through a hole to connect it to its base. It was a little stuck, so Jade gave it a swift kick and the pole fell down with a _bounce. _They walked over to the fallen flag and picked it up, folding it together and giving it to the officer.

"Thank you sir," Steve breathed out and Jade followed with a short nod. Steve helped his friend into the back of the Jeep and then proceeded to take his own seat. Agent Carter smiled back at the two as the Jeep drove away and the rest of the troops ran the rest of the way.

* * *

Colonel Chester Phillips found himself standing next to Dr. Abraham Erskine once more. This was starting to become a regular thing now. As usual, they watched the candidates for the Super Soldier Serum train. It was becoming more and more obvious of who would be picked, and they were not the Colonel's first picks. "Are you really sure about this Doctor?" He asked his comrade while the troops were crawling in the mud underneath barbed wire while carrying a rifle. Typical military training that made all the wimps want to go cry for their mother's.

"Oh I am pozitive. Not only do zey possess zee qualitiez I am lookingz vor individually, but zey also vork vell together. Zey vill be a great team." They did work well together. Both candidates seemed to be on the same page. When one of them had an idea, the other one almost instantly understood what they were getting at. Neither one would leave the other behind. If one lagged behind while jogging, the other stayed close by. The connection between them was incredible; there was no better team than them. It would come in handy when time for war. They would be chosen for the serum; Dr. Erskine would make sure of that. He had already picked them. And he _would _get his way.

"But they're scrawny, and weak! And for Christ's sake she's a woman!" Colonel Phillips tried (and failed) to keep his voice low.

"Vomen are sometimes zee best strategists. Zey are clever and tough, unlike zee stereotype zey are granted." Colonel Phillips still wasn't sure though. It was simple; women did not belong in the army with Agent Carted as a great exception. _She _was tough. Plus she was British, so he didn't really _get _a say in it. He had no control over her. The two men turned their attention back to the troops as they made their way to the end of the course. Rogers and Callaway were side by side while Hodges was in front of Rogers. Hodges decided to mess with the scrawny blonde behind him. He kicked the wooden beam supporting the barbed wire and part of it collapsed on Steve. Jade narrowed her eyes at her friend's attacker. _No one gets away with hurting my friends. _With a smirk, Jade cocked her gun and aimed it at the beam next to Hodge.

"Callaway! What are you doing?" The lieutenant yelled at her. "Those things are. Not. Load-" But he was cut off when Jade shot twice at the beam, making it collapse some. Hodge was now stuck underneath the wire. The lieutenant had a bewildered look on his face. "Where did you get a loaded gun Callaway?"

"I have my sources sir!" Dr. Erskine chuckled from his spot off to the side. Upon receiving a glare from the Colonel, he lifted up his hands in surrender.

"It vas not me." Colonel Phillips relaxed a bit. Who knows we she got it from? "Zough she does 'ave good aim." The doctor whispered. "We 'ave to make a decision Colonel, and I alveady know who I vant." The military man sighed in defeat. There was no way around it, those two were who Erskine wanted and so there was no other choice. That's who would have to be picked. Who knows, maybe they would end up doing something good.

"Alright Erskine, you can have Rogers and Callaway. But when they fail, don't come crying to me."

"Oh I von't 'ave to." He replied smiling. Once Steve and Jade finished the course, Dr. Erskine made his way over to where they stood, chatting about happy things. Or at least as happy as things could be during a war. "Good afternoon Steven."

Steve's attention was directed towards the doctor now. "Good afternoon Dr. Erskine."

"Good afternoon Jadelynn." Jade became pale at the use of her full name. Dr. Erskine took notice of this and smiled gently. "I am sorry, Jade; I'm just used to calling people by zere virst name."

"It's okay Dr. Erskine, good afternoon," she replied softly. He clapped his hands together and smiled in a more excited way.

"I 'ave great news! Colonel Phillips and I 'ave talked it over and both of you 'ave officially been chozen for zee project." Jade had forgotten all about her name now. She was practically bubbling over with excitement now. (In a much more visible way than Steve, even though he was quite excited as well.)

"Golly, that's great!" She squealed and hugged the doctor quickly and then hugged Steve before skipping-literally-to the mess hall for dinner.

"I 'ave never seen somevone so happy about being injected vith a DNA altering serum." Dr. Erskine said disbelievingly.

"Well you've never met someone like Jade before. She's random and giggly one second and then serious and courageous the next. There's no way to explain it other than her being…her." Dr. Erskine nodded in agreement and the two men began to follow to skipping girl into the mess hall.

"Hey Jadelynn!" He yelled jokingly.

"Shut up Steve!"

* * *

**There it is. Please review and maybe we can make a goal of getting to 80 reviews! No flames please! Ciao!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: OMG HEY GUYS! I'm back and better than ever! This is it! The transformation! Are you as excited as I am?! Sorry for such a long wait, school's a pain. **

**ATTENTION! MUY IMPORTANTE! There are a couple questions I'd like to address here. First, several people have asked if there will be a sequel. I am not sure yet. It's still early on in the movie so I'm still not sure. But it's nice to know everyone wants another after this. **

**Second, I've also had a couple people ask if they could see pictures. If I wanted someone to portray Jade, it would be Lyndsey Fonesca from Nikita. (If you have any ideas of who you would want to play Jade, don't hesitate to share!) Other than that, I am not good with picture editing or drawing or any of that stuff. Though if you, my dear readers, if any of you are good with that stuff and/or like/love to draw, you have my full permission to do make some fanart. Just remember that Marvel owns Captain America, and I own Jade! If anyone's got something, please share! **

**Lastly, I am thinking about setting up a website demoted just to pictures for fanfiction. If anyone has any ideas or suggestions PLEASE TELL ME!**

**Thanks for reading that note guys! Here's the long awaited Chapter 7! Review please!**

**Guest reviewers:**

**Guest: Thanks and sorry for such a long wait!**

**guest: Thank you so much. I'm so sorry about such a long wait.**

**Guest: Thanks! I'm glad you love it!**

**Ali: Oh my God I'm past 100 reviews I'm so excited! Sorry for the wait but here it is! Thanks so much and here comes Howard!**

**Guest: Thanks! Sorry for the wait!**

**guest: Sorry for the wait, but there's a nice, full description of Jade's new look down here!**

**guest: Thanks so much! I'll try to keep up the good work!**

**gohan's-girl: I will definitley continue thanks so much!**

**lovingit: Thank you so much for all of those wonderful reviews! Sometimes I didn't really get a lot of compliments on the writing style so thanks so much for that!**

**Guest: Thanks so much! It's so hard to find a Captain America story that's just Captain America!**

**Guest: Thanks! I will definitley not stop this story! Thanks!**

**SheCap: Thanks and that's a wonderful question. I usually don't tell people this but since you asked I'll tell. The name for Jade I chose is Lady Liberty. I know it's used a lot (though not as much as Miss America) but it's just perfect! Not sure about a sequel though.**

**Kat: Thanks so much! Here's an update!**

**Review please!**

* * *

Chapter 7: Good Becomes Great

"_**The strength and power of a country depends absolutely on the quantity of good men and women in it".-John Ruskin  
**_

The night before the procedure came quickly. Jade was nervous as hell. It was dinner time, but Jade and Steve couldn't have anything to eat or drink this close to the procedure other than water so they went back to their respective bunks to try and get a good night's rest. Jade sat on her bed, brushing her hair subconsciously. It was a very pretty brush. It was golden with an etched pattern of delicate vines and flowers, a gift from her grandmother on her sixteenth birthday, long before the war. Those times were so happy and worry free. The war made everything depressing. People tried to look happy, they tried to make it like everything was normal and you didn't have to care about anything in the world. But really everyone was hurting inside. Loved ones were going away to war and quite possibly never coming back. It was sad to think about and even though many tried to see the bright side of things, they were always truly sad.

Becoming bored, Jade set the brush down onto her bed and made her way to the door. Maybe Steve was still up and bored like she was. Being as nervous as she was, Jade just needed someone to talk to. So she walked down and across the dirt path to Steve's bunk. There was maybe thirty minutes until dinner was over. That was plenty enough time to talk. Coming up to the cabin, she knocked on the door that was obviously better taken care of than her own. "Who is it?" Jade rolled her eyes, only Steve would ask who it was when it was obvious as to whom.

"It's Jade!" She replied and she stuffed her hands into her pockets, waiting for access to be granted.

"Oh I'm sorry, I need full names please!" Steve yelled back to her. Jade grit her teeth. The little bugger was probably smiling too. She'd have to have a little _talk _with Dr. Erskine later.

"Fine! Steven Grant Rogers, it is Jade Callaway! Now can I come in?" She heard a deep laugh and permission to enter. Jade opened up the door and walked in. Steve was sitting on his bed with his back to her while reading a book. She stomped over to where he sat, she'd need shoes that fit her eventually, and plopped down on the bed next to him. "What are you reading?" She asked him. The book was small and brown leather. Actually, it looked quite familiar.

"Just some poetry from a great, unknown writer," He replied with a slight smile. Jade tugged the book out of his hand and read the page he was on. Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a little "o."

"You stole my book?" She asked disbelievingly. Steve smiled sheepishly, trying to look as innocent as possible.

"I…I didn't steal it. It just…it um…" He was stopped when a hand was smashed over his mouth, making any words sound like a strange gurgle noise.

"I'm sorry to be so blunt, but dear, you are horrible at lying." A faint pink blush spread across his cheeks. "And you blush way too much." The result was an even deeper blush. Jade sighed with an over exaggerated tone.

"Why didn't you become a writer? Why be a soldier when you could have been a poet?" Steve finally asked after his blush lessened some. Jade thought for a moment. It was a great question, one that she already knew the answer to. She sat there with her mouth open for the longest time, like she was about to say something but the words wouldn't come out. A strained noise came out for half a second.

"I tried to, but it didn't exactly get my mother's approval. She wants me to get married and have kids. That's it…no job…no life." Steve felt somewhat sorry for the girl sitting next to him. Steve could do anything he wanted. Men had tons of opportunities out there. Women, not so much, they were expected to get married, have kids, and maybe have a career in the factories or as a nurse for the time being. Then when the war was over, everything would go back to normal. Steve could do anything, be anything, while Jade's fate was basically set in stone for her.

"Is that why you took Dr. Erskine's offer?

"Partly," she replied. "I guess it was a huge mix of things. See, one day I decided I was so tired of living such a boring and standard life that I wanted more. I went to the movies and there was a clip before the cartoon. It was about our boys overseas. I saw the great they were doing, how they were keeping our country safe. I wanted that. I wanted to be one of those men…well woman in my case I guess. I didn't like the idea of the Nazis or _anyone_ for that matter hurting the ones I love. So I decided to do something about it. And then there were some other reasons of course: to prove myself, to rebel against my mother, to feel important. But I mainly joined the army because I wanted to keep America safe and because I didn't want to live to anyone's standards." Steve nodded as if to say he accepted the answer. "What about you?"

Jade waited patiently as Steve sighed deeply. "I don't like bullies. I'm doing this because no one should be able to pick on the little guys."

Jade chewed on her lip for a brief moment. "This isn't high school Steve. They aren't bullies they're monsters. This isn't just about the little guys. It's about every person in this world. I think this is a little bigger than some playground bullies." Her opinion was fair, but of course Steve was a little hurt that he accepted her reasoning so easily and she shot his down.

"I don't think of it literally though. You have to understand that it's a metaphor. It's not right…"

"If someone is above everyone else because they think they're better." She finished for him. Steve gave a relieved sigh and a nod. It was strange how much they thought alike. Some people may have found it…creepy. But to them it felt almost natural, like second nature. Jade personally found it kind of cool. The fact that they were always in tune with one another really saved a lot of time since they didn't have to explain things to each other.

"Have you written to your brother recently?" Steve asked, changing the subject after their comfortable silence.

"I just got a letter back from him actually. It really surprised me to get one back so fast. He mostly talked about how he wouldn't tell my mother I'm here. Oh and that we need to win the war soon because he's getting tired of rations." Jade started giggling softly, then Steve soon joined her and they laughed loudly. If someone had been in the room, they would have probably thought they were psychotic.

There was a knock on the door. Dr. Erskine popped his head into the room and asked with a warm smile, "May I?" Jade nodded while smiling back and Steve gave a short, "Come in." Dr. Erskine walked completely through the door carrying a bottle of liquor and three glasses and closed it behind him. The latch settled into place with a soft 'click.' The old scientist sat down on the bed across from them still in his white coat. Did he ever where anything different or was his closet simply filled with the garment? His smile grew even softer as he gazed upon the two soldiers. "I 'ave never seen a vore…cooperative team zan you two. You vill do vell together." Both of them smiled. "Can't sleep?" He asked.

"Nah, guess I got the jitters." Steve said. Jitters were an understatement though. On the outside, Jade was calm, cool, and collected. Though on the inside she was yelling and screaming 'I can't do this! I want out!'

"Me too," The Doctor said interrupting the brunette's thoughts.

"Can we ask you a question?" Steve asked the scruffy bearded doctor.

"Just vone?" He asked teasingly.

"Why us?" Jade asked this time. Dr. Erskine sighed in defeat as he placed the bottle on the ground.

"I suppose zat is zee only question zat matters." He took a moment to look down at the liquor in his hands. "Zis is from Augsburg, my city," he said gesturing to the reddish brown bottle. Dr. Erskine closed his eyes for a minute, thinking of details as he replayed it all in his head. His brown eyes popped back open again like everything suddenly came back to him. "So many people vorget zat zee first country zat zee Nazi's invaded vas zeir own. You know, after the last var zee...my people struggled. Zey...zey felt veak. Zey felt small. And zen Hitler comes along vith zee marching and zee big show and zee flags and zee...and zee..." He waved his hands around like he was trying to stop himself as he stuttered over the words of his story. He fixed his glasses that began to slide down his nose. "And he...he hears of me, my vork and he finds me. And he says, you," He pointed at Steve while telling his story. Jade always loved it when Dr. Erskine told stories. He made it so real and personal that you just felt at ease. But it was like he should be home telling stories to his grandchildren, not some random people he had just met not long ago.

"...he says you vill make us strong. Vell," Dr. Erskine lifted his hands up into the air like it was a defense. "I am not interested. So he sends zee head of Hydra, his research division, a brilliant scientist by zee name of Johann Schmidt. Now, Schmidt iz a member of zee inner circle and he's ambitious. He and Hitler share a passion vor a cult power and Teutonic myth. Hitler uses his fantasies to inspire his followers. But vor Schmidt it is not fantasy. For him, it is real. He has become convinced that zere is a great power in the earth, left zere by the Gods, vaiting to be seized by a superior man. So ven he hears about my formula and vat it can do, he cannot resist." Jade closed her eyes. She could picture those little details in her head and each one scared her. She didn't even know what Schmidt looked like but that didn't stop her imagination from thinking of the worst thing possible.

"Schmidt must become zat superior man." Oh God…did he?

"He injected himself with the serum?" Jade asked looking for conformation. Dr. Erskine nodded weakly. It made him sad to think that his creation went to such waste. Schmidt was not the right person for it.

"Did it make him stronger?" Steve was on the edge of the bed. He seemed pretty interested in the story.

"Yeah," He answered with a scoff. "But, zere vere other effects. Zee serum vas not ready. But more important, zee man. Zee serum amplifies everything zat is inside. So, good becomes great. Bad becomes vorse." He let this sink in for a moment before continuing on. "This is why you vere chosen. Because a strong man or voman, who has known power all their life, vill lose respect for that power." Jade looked down at her boots, studying the mud spots. Power was something that had never really interested her, but every once in awhile it sounded nice. Then she felt rough, calloused fingers lift her head up until she was looking at the German scientist. "But a veak man or voman knows the value of strength, and knows compassion." He pointed at them once more.

"Thanks," Steve started.

"I think," Jade finished for him.

Dr. Erskine started pointing at the three glasses he had placed on the table. Steve grabbed the three glasses and handed one to Jade so she could hold it. Dr. Erskine poured some of the liquor into each of the three glasses. "Vatever happens tomorrow, you must promise me one thing. Zat you both vill stay who you are. Not a perfect soldier, but good," he pointed to Steve. "People," he pointed to Jade. She smiled; Jade didn't plan on changing anytime soon. She watched him take his glass as Steve raised his in the air.

"To the little guys," he toasted.

Jade lifted up her own glass as well and smirked. "And to the dames." They both tilted their glasses up to take a drink when all of a sudden they were being yelled at by a frantic Dr. Erskine.

"No! No! Vait! Vait! Vat I am doing? No! You have procedure tomorrow! No fluids!" He took their glasses and set them on the table next to him as he still held his own in his right hand. Then he took each glass and poured its contents into his own.

"Alright, we'll drink it after." Steve was now somewhat annoyed. You don't just bring in alcohol and then take it away. It's just plain cruel!

Dr. Erskine looked a little offended. "I do not have procedure tomorrow! Drink it after," he scoffed lightly. "Drink it now!" He held up the almost over flowing glass and downed the liquid it held. Steve started to laugh lightly before Jade joined him and all three laughed like absolute crazy people. Who knows? They were going to turn a couple of scrawny kids into American icons. Maybe they were crazy.

* * *

Jade buttoned up the last button on her shirt. Her private's uniform was a tan button up shirt, matching pants, a tie, and a tan garrison cap. She pulled her hair back into a high ponytail, the ends curling lightly. Then she placed her cap on her head and secured it with a couple bobby pins. She breathed in deeply. This was it. She could do this. Would the transformation hurt? God, it probably would! What if the pain was so terrible it killed her? No, Dr. Erskine would have told her if there was a possibility of that. Right?

'_Knock, knock, knock'_

Jade jumped at the sound. She made her way over to the door and opened it to reveal none other than the scientist himself. "Good morning doctor!" She greeted him with a wide smile. He returned to expression.

"Good morning Jade. Are you veady?"

"No not really but let's just get this over with!" They both laughed to ease the nerves.

"Vell zen come along. I vill be leaving a bit earlier zan you and Steven but it vould be my pleasure to escort you to zee office for zee time being." Jade nodded. She needed to mail a letter so going to the main office would work just fine. Last night she had written a letter to Jasper before she went to bed. They walked over to the office and Jade placed a stamp on the envelope. But before she sealed it closed, she took out the letter and looked it over one last time.

_Dear Jasper,_

_ This letter is going to be short. I apologize for that. I just wanted to let you know that I'm being shipped out tomorrow morning. I included the information of where you can send any future letters to in the envelope. I probably won't be able to write as often anymore since I'll be so busy being on duty, but I'll always read your letters and I'll make sure to send one back eventually._

_ I just wanted to let you know that I love you. I love you, mom, Jacob, and Allison. No, this isn't a goodbye. It's just an 'I'll see you soon.' Thanks for keeping my secret and I'll tell you more ASAP._

_ With all my love, Jade._

_P.S. Get over it you big baby. You can deal with some rations for a little while!_

She smiled before slipping the letter into the outbox. She had two rocks in her life. Jasper kept her grounded while at home. He kept her sane while her mother was driving her off the deep end. Her other rock was Steve. He did basically the same things as her brother except he kept her sane while at camp and now eventually on the battlefield.

"I must be going. Goodbye Jade." She felt Dr. Erskine give her a small pat on the shoulder and she smiled slightly. She slowly sat down in a chair. He left the office, soon being replaced with Steve (wearing the same outfit as her) and Agent Peggy Carter.

"Morning Queens," the former called to the girl as she quietly picked at her fingernails, making them worse than they already were. She chewed them and tore them until they were uneven and jagged. At the mention of Steve's nickname for her, her head popped up to face the blonde.

"Hey Brooklyn," her voice was gently but shaky. Jade couldn't stop chewing her nails. It grew awkwardly silent for a moment until Agent Carter tried to break the silence.

"If you don't mind me asking, why do you call each other Queens and Brooklyn?" It was a ridiculous question. It was completely obvious if you read their files, which they both knew the agent had. But it was an attempt to break the silence.

"Uh, well we're both from New York," Jade said softly.

"Yeah but we're from two different parts. I'm from Brooklyn and she's from Queens. So when we found that out we just established them as our nicknames for each other." Steve stuffed his hands in his pockets. He tended to do that a lot. Just like Jade and playing with her fingernails.

"They just worked," the two new privates said together. Agent Carter nodded and then gave them an odd look like they were, uh, coo-coo.

"Do you two always talk in unison?" She asked with a light chuckle after her smooth English accent.

"Sometimes, other times we finish each other's sentences. It's a little creepy, yeah, but it comes in handy every once in a while." Jade's voice seemed to be distant. It was light and she looked to be in 'another world.' Steve quirked an eyebrow before crouching in front of her chair.

"Jade, are you okay?" He asked her slowly. When her gaze turned back to him, they were watery and wide. "Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong?" He asked once the first tear slid down her pale cheek. It was a rare thing. Steve had never seen her cry before. It was odd to see the slick drops slide down her cheek and the drop off her chin onto her freshly pressed pants.

"I'm scared," she whispered so lowly that only Steve could hear her. He clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth lightly before wrapping his arms around her. "I'm so, so scared," she choked out through soft sobs.

"Is this about the procedure?" He felt her weakly nod into his shoulder. Letting out a sigh, he hugged her tighter. "I…I know you're scared. I-I am too." He mentally face palmed. Comforting women was _not _his expertise. "We both have every right to be scared. But that's okay…because we're going to get through this and we're going to get through it together. I'll be with you the whole time." Steve pulled back and wiped the tears from her cheeks and then the ones the hung at the bottom of her lashes, clutching for dear life.

And then there was a feminine couch from behind them. Agent Carter stood there awkwardly, bouncing on each foot. "Uh…I don't mean to interrupt but our car is waiting to take us to the base." Steve nodded and helped Jade onto her feet. He had never seen her so vulnerable before. It was a whole other side of her. Once outside, Agent Carter opened up the car door for them and Jade slid in first, Steve sat in the middle, and Agent Carter sat on the other side of them, the left side of the car.

The research base just happened to be in Brooklyn. As they drove through the neighborhood, some kids moved out of the car's way as they played a game of baseball, completely unaware of what was in their neighborhood. "Hey," Steve said in realization. "I know this neighborhood!" He pointed off to an alleyway next to a music shop. "I got beat up in that alley…and that parking lot…and behind that diner." Jade giggled girlishly. At first Steve sent her a glare but the pulled his gaze away when he realized that was the first time she had laughed since the morning's events.

"Did you have something against running away?" Agent Carter asked, refusing to make eye contact with him. Steve fumbled with the tip of his garrison hat. He had taken it off about a half hour before.

He finally shook his head and looked over at the ruby lipped woman. "Start running they'll never let you stop. You stand up…push back, can't say no forever right?"

"I know a little about what that's like. To have every door shut in your face." Agent Carter replied to him, still refusing to make eye contact.

"Tell me about it," Jade muttered. The agent sent her a small smile before turning back to face the front again. Steve took a minute to think before continuing on with the conversation.

"I guess I just don't why you'd wanna join the army if you're a beautiful dame. Or a beautiful...a woman. An agent, not a dame! You are beautiful, but..." Steve gave up after stuttering over his words. Jade started chuckling and then laughing uncontrollably before Steve shot another glare and she stopped, though every once in a while a light giggle would slip out.

"You have no idea how to talk to a woman, do you?" Peggy asked him, finally meeting his gaze.

Steve just gave a sigh. "I think this is the longest conversation I've had with one other than Jade here. That's just because I know her so well. Women aren't exactly lining up to dance with a guy they might step on." Jade felt a little sad. Steve was a great guy! Sure he was a little skinny, and pale, and short, and weak but was that all women thought about. Was Jade the only one who paid attention to the other aspects of a man? Like personality and smarts.

"You must have danced!" Peggy said disbelievingly. Really, that's what she got out of all of that?

"Well, asking a woman to dance always seemed so terrifying. And the past few year just didn't seem to matter that much." He said with a shrug of his shoulder. "Figured I'd wait."

"What are you waiting for?" Jade asked him. He watched out the front window for a little while, just watching the lines on the road.

"The right partner," he finally said. You couldn't tell if it was directed towards anyone though. It was simple and obvious, like there wasn't even another answer. After that it became comfortable quiet. Jade spent almost fifteen minutes taking her hair out, braiding it, taking it out, putting it into two braids, taking it out, putting it in a bun, etc. Finally she settled for a high braided ponytail. She felt Steve lightly touch it and then retreat back almost as quickly. He mumbled something like "It's pretty." And then he returned his gaze to his lap.

Jade once more gave a light chuckle. "What?" Steve asked her.

She shook her head while still laughing. "I'm sorry. You're just horrible with women. Even with me." He blushed red.

That was the last of their conversation as they pulled off to the side of the road. The car stopped in front of an old looking antique shop simply called 'Brooklyn Antiques.' The three of them stepped out and Agent Carter directed them inside. Two men in raggedy clothes were outside conversing. They sent the three a smile as they walked inside.

A bell chimed as the door opened and closed. It was a large open space with a variety of antiques such as desks, clocks, lamps, and jewelry. An old woman with thinning gray hair in a pink cardigan walked out of a doorway covered by a curtained at the sound of the chiming. "Wonderful weather this morning, isn't it?" She asked Peggy with a frail voice.

"Yes, but I always carry an umbrella," she responded in a rehearsed tone. Jade and Steve turned to each other and shrugged. They watched the old woman go around to the front desk and press a button on the side. Agent Carter led them though the navy blue tapestry to another room. It was the same gray color as the store, but it only contained a roll top desk and bookshelves filled with a wide variety of books. There were small ones and big ones. Some were pristine and others were coated in a fine layer of dust. The trio stopped right in front of the large bookcase.

Jade peered around Peggy's shoulder expectantly. "What…do we do? Is there like a book we pull out and a secret door opens or some-" Jade was interrupted when the bookshelf split into two and opened up toward them. Jade's mouth formed a small 'o' shape as a short hallway was revealed. It was sectioned off by walls with large open doorways. A desk was in each section until you came up to a pair of steel double doors. They walked down the hallway. Peggy held confidence while Jade and Steve kept looking around trying to take in every detail of the base.

The double doors were opened by two guards once they approached. Inside was a sterile testing room with all kinds of machines and lights. In the center was a large ring. Machines formed a circle and in the middle were two large devices shaped like a human body and padded. One of them was smaller than the other. They were on a balcony approaching a railing when the whole room went quiet and stared at them. Suddenly Steve felt a small hand grab his in a death grip. Steve looked at Peggy for the both of them and she simply exhaled deeply and led them down the stairs to the main area where Dr. Erskine was patiently waiting.

Steve and Jade approached him as Peggy stayed behind the two. "Good morning," he said, shaking both of their hands. A flash erupted from next to them. They all turned to a man holding a large camera. "Please, not here," Dr. Erskine said with some annoyance and the man scurried away from them. Steve looked over at the machines. "Are you veady?" Dr. Erskine asked.

They nodded, still unsure of themselves. "Good," he continued. "Steven, take off your hat, tie, and shirt please." Steve reached up for his cap but found a small hand still connected to his. Steve cleared his throat at Jade who sent a panicked look his way. Dr. Erskine held his hand in front of her. Reluctantly and hesitantly, Steve's hand was replaced with the doctor's. "Come Jade, we 'ave a special area vor you to change in vor privacy." Looking nervously at Steve one last time, she allowed Dr. Erskine to lead her away and to a small room off to the side.

He handed her a roll of ace bandages and a safety pin. "Take off your hat, tie, and shirt as vell but cover your chest vith zee bandages. And vet your hair loose as vell." Jade nodded once as Dr. Erskine left her to her privacy. She quickly removed her hat, tie, and unbuttoned her shirt. Then she shed her undershirt and bra, replacing it with the bandages. They were uncomfortable and down right itchy. Ignoring that though, she returned to the center of the room to find Steve lying down on his machine.

He waved once he spotted the brunette and nodded for her to get in her own machine. She laid down on the foamy padding of the machine. There were strange pad like things with small needles in them and open holes that looked like were big enough to hold syringes. Soon, Dr. Erskine returned and watched as the two shifted where they lay. "Comfortable?" He asked.

Steve sighed. "It's a little big," Steve answered with slight humor in his voice. Dr. Erskine chuckled lightly. "Save us any of that schnapps?" He asked, still trying to keep the mood somewhat light and not…nervous

Dr. Erskine gave a curt shake of his head. "Not as much as I should have," he said guiltily. "Sorry," he said with a slight raise of the eyebrows. "Next time…Mr. Stark! How are your levels?" Jade's head popped up in surprise as the familiar dark haired man came into view, completely oblivious to her presence.

"Levels are at 100%! We may dim half the lights in Brooklyn…but we are…ready. As ever as we will be." He was still completely oblivious.

"Howard?" Said man turned around to the petite brunette. His eyes widened at the sight of her. He seemed to take a few steps back before being able to form an actual sentence.

"Jade! What are you doing here?" He said with a wide grin. Was he actually _that _oblivious? "Have-have you come to see my work. Wait how did you get clearance to come in here? And why are you lying down…on…that…table." He said the last parts of the sentence very slow as if realizing the answer to his own question. His smirk turned into a grave frown. "Oh no! Absolutely not! I refuse to let you be a part of this!" He yelled angrily. Steve sent a sideways glance to the two.

"You don't get to control my life Howard!" She yelled back to him with just as much spite.

"I don't care! I'm not putting you at risk Jade!"

"It's my decision whether to do this or not, not yours! And this is what I want!"

Howard waved his hands up and then back down to his sides, admitting defeat. "You know what, fine! You ruin your life; you go out there and risk it! See if I care!" He dropped the subject quickly, trying to get over the fact that this woman was about to give up her whole life to be what they were calling a 'super soldier.'

"How do you know Howard Stark?" She heard softly next to her. Steve was looking at her still with a quizzical look.

"We went on a date once." She replied bitterly. A nurse came over and strapped her into the machine. He just seemed to become more curious so he went back to watching the nurse strap them in.

"Agent Carter, don't you zink zat it vould be more comfortable in zee booth," Dr. Erskine asked the British officer clearly hinting for her to get lost.

"Oh, oh yes of course," she replied with very little enthusiasm. Peggy did _not _want to leave these two alone. But following Dr. Erskine's advice, she smiled at them one more time before making her way up to the upper observation booth filled with military officers, the press, and even the senator.

* * *

Dr. Erskine picked up a microphone from a table and flicked it until it made an obnoxious screeching noise. "Can you hear me? Is zis thing on?" Once he got a conformation he moved into a more formal part of the experiment. "Ladies and gentlemen, today we take not another step towards annihilation, but zee first step on zee path to peace." They lowered those needle pads down onto them. Steve had them on his stomach across his chest while Jade had them on her abdominal muscles. They stung going down, but the pain was quick and went by fast. "We begin vith a series of micro injections into zee subjects' major muscle groups." Nurses brought out tubes filled with the serum and placed them in those holes. There were seven tubes for each, though only six were used. Leaving one tube of each serum left over for duplication if it worked. The formulas were different due to difference in gender. The serum for Steve was a vibrant blue and Jade's serum was neon purple. "Zee serum infusion vill cause immediate cellular change. And zen to stimulate growth, zee subjects vill be saturated vith vita rays." He put down the microphone and continued to check on his test subjects.

A nurse went to each of the two and cleaned off a spot on their arm with an alcohol swab and then stuck a needle in the disinfected area, injecting them with something. Jade only flinched slightly while Steve was breathing in and out slowly. "That wasn't so bad," he said sounding relieved.

Dr. Erskine gave a sad smile. "Zat vas penicillin." Jade then broke out into more laughter.

"Shut it _Jadelynn!" _Steve hissed through clenched teeth. Jade stopped laughing and only smiled brightly. Steve thought it was amazing how even when she's about to be injected with a strange serum, she could still smile. It was a great trait about her.

Dr. Erskine shrugged a shoulder and turned around to Howard. "Serum infusion beginning in 5…4…3…" The count down went agonizingly slow as two more needle pads were lowered onto their biceps. "2…1." The serum drained from their containers. It quickly went down smaller tubes, into the needles, and then proceeded into their muscles. It burned. The best way to describe it was that someone cut you open, set the insides of your body on fire, and then closed you back up. It wasn't a good feeling. _At all. _Jade squirmed in her seat. She wanted to scream out, but she held it in and bit the inside of her cheek until she felt the metallic taste of blood. Jade could literally feel her muscles growing. She really wanted to bite her nails right now.

And then it was still burning, but it was no longer a harsh, irritating burn. It was more of feeling of light. It still burned, but in a chilly way. If that made any sense. "Now Mr. Stark," Dr. Erskine commanded. He pulled a lever and their machines lifted so they were standing up and then they closed completely. It was dark and cold. Steve heard a light tap on the window of his container. "Steven," rang the German accented voice. "Can you hear me?"

There was a silent pause before he faintly heard, "It's probably too late to go to the bathroom, right?" There was no answer so he assumed that was a yes. Dr. Erskine walked over to the smaller container and knocked on that one.

"Jade, how are you doing in zere?"

Once again there was a little pause. "Steve asked if it was too late to go to the bathroom, didn't he?" Dr. Erskine chuckled as he turned to Howard Stark.

"We vill proceed." Howard turned a dial and placed on his safety goggles.

He turned a small wheel, activating the power. "That's 10%." The containers began to glow brightly with light. "20%...30…that's 40%."

"Vital signs are both normal."

"That's 50%...60!" The lights were becoming unbearably bright. Jade's eyes were closed, surrounding her in partial darkness except for the faintly glow. There wasn't much pain right now. Just a slight tingly sensation, like your foot was asleep and every time you moved it, there was a slight shock wave an uncomfortable-ness. "70!" That's when the pain began. It was worse than the injections. It wasn't just burning. It was burning, itching, white searing hot pain that you just wanted to die right there.

On the outside, you could hear both screams. Steve's was like he was screaming while clenching his jaw while Jade's scream was just an open wail. Dr. Erskine became panicked. He bounced from each platform trying to see inside the too bright windows, calling their names over and over with desperation.

"Shut it down!" Peggy screamed, emerging from the box to the balcony. Dr. Erskine tried pounding on their windows. There was just more screaming and wailing. "SHUT IT DOWN!"

"Kill the reactor, Mr. Stark! Kill the reactor!" Dr. Erskine called out to him as the inventor frantically jumped around to turn off the machine. Wait! They were shutting it down? NO, no, no, no!

"NO!" Both Steve and Jade yelled in unison.

"Don't! I can do this!" He screamed. The pain was unbearable but he was so close…so close to his dreams. There was another ear piecing scream from Jade.

"I'm shutting it down Jade!" Howard called out to her.

"Don't you dare Howard! Don't you dare touch that lever!"

The scientist and the inventor gave in. The latter returned to the wheel and continued turning it. "80…90…that's one hundred percent!" The screams had stopped. The machines were smoking. The containers were too bright to even glance at. Sparks began to fly everywhere due to the power overload. Then suddenly, it all stopped. The machines powered down and the bright light dimmed until it was nothing. The room became quiet for a split moment before Dr. Erskine eagerly urged Howard to open the containers. He complied.

The doors opened up to reveal two totally different people. The once sickly pale and skinny soldiers were now muscular and tan. They were what an American idol should look like. They were the perfect soldiers.

There was hustle and bustle as everyone in the room tried to make their way to the two soldiers. Dr. Erskine helped Steve down from his containment unit and Howard did the same for Jade. "How are you? How do you feel?" Howard whispered to her.

"Leg's asleep, but I've never felt better." She was ecstatic. Never in her life had she felt so healthy. Her irregular heartbeat was something that didn't cause too much trouble, but gave her a huge risk of a stroke. Now she could feel her heart beating steadily now. It felt…normal.

"We did it." Steve said to Dr. Erskine, slightly limping until he adjusted to walking again.

"Yeah, yeah I zink ve did" Steve and Jade stood next to one another, though didn't look at the other. They were sore and breathing hard. And they also didn't want to see how the other turned out. Peggy pushed her way in front of the crowd to stand in front of the two. She was speechless for what seemed like a long time.

"How do you feel?" She asked both of them.

"Taller," they replied in their infamous unison. Peggy grabbed white t-shirts for them and handed them to each one so they could put them on.

"You…you guys look taller." She was still speechless. There was nothing else to say. Then, after a long time, the two looked at each other…and were speechless as well.

Jade looked over at her friend for the first time since they started the procedure. Her eyes widened in complete and utter shock. Steve was…definitely not scrawny. No sir 'e.' He…he had muscles! Actual biceps! And abs! A gosh darn six pack for crying out loud! He had to of grown like, a foot, because now he was average height. Wait; forget that, he was tall. Like really tall! His skin was no longer that sickly pale shade, but a nice tan that looked like he could warm up the coldest Eskimo with one hug. He looked so amazi- _Whoa there Jade, what are you thinking? He's one of your best friends! You don't have thoughts like that about him. _Oh but his hair was even sandier blonde and looked like you could just run your hands through it forever. His eyes, oh God his eyes! The ocean blue was now even brighter and clearer. _Stop it Jade! _

Steve looked over at Jade, expecting for her skin tone to darken some and for her to grow a few inches. Boy was he wrong. His eyes bugged out of his head. First off her skin tone was a rich tan color that looked warm and inviting. She had grown to a bit taller than the average dame…no woman…oh forget it…she was a dame. If she was beautiful before, she was a completely gorgeous dame. Her eyes were still jade, but they were a brighter jade color full of life. Her lips were full and her skin tone could probably handle that bright red now. Her deep hair that once sat in brittle waves in one shade hung in soft, healthy curls of multiple shades of a deep brown. Her arms were slightly muscular and her stomach was flat and in shape. And her uh…chest…was…uh…um…fuller. _Oh my God Steve, don't think about her like that! _

"Steve?" She questioned in a breathless whisper. Steve still couldn't say anything. He just smiled. It was one of the biggest smiles he had ever smiled. Jade returned the gesture. Tears silently slid down her now tan cheeks with a rosy tint. They weren't sad tears though. They were tears of pure joy. "We did it Steve!" In one quick motion, he picked her up and swung her around in a circle. It was a lot easier to do that now. "Oh my God, you are really strong!"

"I know!" He nearly squealed in delight. The smiles never left their faces. _What were those thoughts about? _She wondered to herself. _Where did they come from? I've thought _anything _like that!_ But her thoughts were interrupted when the booth above them exploded.

* * *

**A/N: If you haven't already, please read the author's note at the top!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey guys. I know what you're thinking, I really need to update more often! I try to but my schedule is being weighed down between homework, Jazz Band, music lessons, etc. It's no excuse but I'm trying. I only got this up because I was sick today but I won't be able to write tomorrow because I'll have extra homework :/ Guess what guys? I got a website! Go check out clarinetgirl628fanfiction . weebly . com (Without spaces) There's pics and all that good stuff. If you want to make fan art or things like that, you can check out the info for that on my profile.**

**Anyways here's the next chapter! Review please!**

**Guest reviews:**

**Guest: Thanks so much! I will definitley be continuing with this story!**

**Annie: My friend came up with Lyndsey Fonesca as Jade and I'm so thankful! Thanks!**

**AvengerNerd3: Thank you so much! Lol damn right he's fine xD**

**Ali: Thanks so much! I'm glad you were excited!**

**guest: Omg that idea for her to have to help save Jacob as well...I love it! Do you mind if I use it? You'll get credit at the beginning at the chapter.**

**gohan's girl: Hmm...I've never really considered Vanessa Hudgens as Jade. I think it's because whenever I think over her I think of HSM XD lol but good suggestion**

**Thegirlwholived: Thank you so much! I'm not sure if Jade will go to the future yet. But Peggy will have an important role as well in this story because she'll be like a best friend to Jade. Sorry for the cliffhanger those don't happen much with me but I just couldn't resist! Sorry for the wait, enjoy!**

**Guest: Sorry this took so long!**

**Guest: Lol yeah Jade's not that great with insults xD Thanks for reviewing!**

* * *

**Chapter 8: Cut Off One Head**

"_**I am more afraid of an army of 100 sheep led by a lion than an army of 100 lions led by a sheep."- Charles M De Talleyrand**_

"…_her thoughts were interrupted when the booth above them exploded."_

Glass shards were thrown onto them, small pieces imbedding themselves into their skin. Steve quickly covered Jade and Peggy, shielding them from the shards. Though it didn't stop a couple pieces from sinking into Jade's skin. When the explosion settled down, a man in a gray suit with black hair was running, but not from the glass. He was heading towards the test tube rack where the two leftover tubes of serum sat. He grabbed both of them.

"Stop him!" Dr. Erskine shouted, facing towards the man, trying to save his creation from falling into the wrong hands. But the man only pulled out a gun…and shot the doctor twice…in the chest and stomach.

"No!" Jade's piercing scream filled the air. The man rushed past the panicking crowd, taking advantage of the diversion, and started heading up the stairway as Dr. Erskine fell to the ground. Peggy went into action almost immediately, shooting at the man as he fled. Steve grabbed Jade's shaking hand and pulled her over to where the man, their friend, lay dying. They crouched down, trying to do something. The doctor only pointed at their chests, no their hearts. He wanted them to stay who they were. And then the scruffy German scientist gently closed his eyes and took one final breath.

Jade buried her face into Steve's white t-shirt. He could feel the wet spot growing from under her eyes. And then it stopped, her sobbing and tears just stopped. Jade looked back up at him, all sadness was completely replaced by pure rage and anger. The same look then mirrored in Steve's own eyes. With non vocalized understanding, they both raced together up the stairs and through the hallways. In the antique store, the poor old lady with the pink cardigan was dead. Though she was holding a machine gun so at least she put up a fight. Outside, the two men in raggedy clothes were also dead and a car was blown up. Had they already missed everything?

The action was far from over. Starting with Peggy who was playing chicken with the thief who was in a taxi cab, while she only had a gun. Before she was splattered across the windshield like a bug, Steve tackled her to the other side of the road. "I had him!" She yelled furiously.

"Oh yes, because the car would have surely have stopped because your body was splattered across its' windshield!" Peggy sent her a glare, but Jade only ran after the apologizing Steve as they raced down the street. Their pants were too short and their feet were bare. There was too much adrenaline coursing through their veins though and Jade couldn't feel any pain. They both picked up their pace, running faster than any _normal _person could. The taxi turned down a corner, they were way too far.

"This way!" Steve yelled and he led her down an alley way.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive! I know this neighborhood like the back of my hand!" Sure enough, they could see the taxi on the other side of the alley.

"Considering you just went through a procedure that changed your appearance, I'm not so sure about that!" Despite the situation they were in, Steve still managed to chuckle. Picking up momentum, they dodged cars and crossed a street. Steve cut his turn too wide though and ended up crashing through a bridal shop window, knocking over several mannequins in the process. He jumped back out just as quickly as he crashed in and apologized once more. Jade had slowed down some but was still running, so once Steve caught up with her they ran faster. The two ran down another alley, but this one had a high fence blocking it. "Steve-"

"Jump," he interrupted her. She slowed down some and watched as Steve jumped over, clearing the fence. Her eyes widened and she sped up again, repeating his actions. With a shocked expression she ran forward and across the street, nearly getting hit by a car. They were so close when Steve literally started playing hopscotch on cars.

"Oh real subtle Steve!" He ignored her and landed on the taxi, holding onto the sides. The driver desperately tried to shake him off, Steve desperately tried to cling on, and Jade desperately tried to catch up. The taxi driver led them into a shipping yard near the river and started to shoot through the roof to get Steve off. In all the confusion, the taxi hit the front end of a semi and flipped over several times. Steve rolled across the cement and Jade helped him back up when she reached him.

The man (Jade didn't know if he was a Nazi or something totally different) shakily got of the car and began shooting at them once more. Steve picked up the broken off car door and held it in front of him. Jade ducked behind him as the shots vibrated the car door. People were screaming and running. Their panicked faces made Jade feel somewhat useless. She had to do something. In all the panic, the German man (Jade finally gave up guessing who he was and decided he was a part of Hydra like in Dr. Erskine's stories.) grabbed a little boy from his hysterical mother and used him as leverage. Steve immediately dropped the car door and tiredly limped over to where the man was taking the boy. Jade started to follow him, though she was somewhat faster as she didn't have a limp.

The man from Hydra was taking the little red headed boy to the Pier and he shot at the super soldiers when they began to follow him. He cursed something at them in German, but Jade and Steve ignored him and instead followed anyway. All the way the little kid was screaming and kicking, trying to get away from the man. The man turned around a corner. Steve grabbed Jade's still somewhat small hand and pulled her behind a huge metal ball. The man shot at it and Steve protectively held onto Jade.

The Hydra man left around another corner, more towards the water and Jade quickly escaped Steve's death hold, beckoning him to follow her.

At the Pier, the man only caught a glimpse of Steve and Jade before he put the cold metal gun against the little boy's head. Seeing this, Steve put his hands up in surrender. "Wait don't! Don't!" The man then aimed the gun at Jade who stood frozen in her spot. Never in her twenty-one years had a gun been aimed at her. The first day she becomes a super-soldier she's been almost shot at least a dozen times. "No don't!" Steve yelled. This time the gun was turned on him. Steve visibly flinched. As the little boy struggled, the man became fed up with him and threw him into the water. The man from Hydra proceeded to run away.

"You go get him, I'll get the boy!" Jade yelled to Steve. Before she had even finished her sentence, she was running towards the edge of the stone walkway.

"Can you even swim?" He yelled back, but she was already gone. The last thing he heard was a very non-reassuring "no."

The water was freezing cold. Its murky depths prevented the bottom from being seen. Though Jade guessed that you wouldn't be able to see it anyways since it was so deep. It was true, Jade couldn't swim. Her mother's brother had drowned as a child while vacationing at a lake. That was the reason her children were not allowed to swim. So Jade never learned. It seemed somewhat natural though. She easily floated to the surface of the icy water. After gasping to fill her lungs with actual air and not dirty water, she glanced around while constantly blinking. Not too far away from her was the little boy. He didn't seem to be struggling too badly, but Jade wanted to make sure he got out fine.

Doing what seemed to be right, she paddled over to the boy. It was working well, she hadn't drowned! Once she came up to him, Jade wrapped an arm around the freckled boy's small torso. "Don't worry, I've got you!" She tried to sound somewhat confident but it only came out in shaky gasps.

"Can you swim miss?" He asked her in a polite voice.

"Not really, but I wanted to make sure you'd be okay!" The little boy smiled up at her in gratitude. Together they swam/paddled their way to the emergency ladder and Jade let the boy go first. She soon followed and watched the boy return to his mother. The woman sent her a grateful look before taking her child and walking away, carrying on with her business. Jade stood on the cement pathway, just breathing and then she ran towards where Steve went, only to have to skid to a stop. The German man came shooting out of the water and onto the pavement.

Steve came climbing up the nearby ladder and walked over to the man with purpose. German/Hydra/Nazi man picked himself up and swung a fist towards the blonde. Steve leant back out of reach and kicked the man down in return. The two vials flew out of his pocket and the glass shattered. Blue and purple goop spread across the cement and mixed together. Ignoring this, Steve grabbed the man's coat in both hands. "Who the hell are you?" By this time Jade made her way over to the two and tried to appear as threatening as possible. She didn't know if it was working.

"The first of many. Cut off one head," The greasy haired man broke off one of his teeth and bit down on it. "Two more shall take its place." His mouth was beginning to foam up. "Hail Hydra!" With one last painful lurch, he collapsed. Death by cyanide.

Steve dropped the dead man's coat and looked down at his hands. It was like he was searching for something, a mark, a scar, something out of the ordinary. His new found strength was definitely not ordinary. But there was nothing. His hands were just a bit bigger and tanner. He grew almost hysterical, grabbing Jade's hand with gentle force. Hers were also a bit bigger than before. Her fingers were long and her skin was soft.

"It's like we've completely changed and yet, we haven't changed at all." He put the hands palms to palm, comparing the size. His were a bit bigger. Not considerably bigger, but what they should be for a normal man and woman. "Our hands used to be the same size."

"My heartbeat…it's normal. I could feel it…and it's not irregular anymore." You could hear the slight giddiness in her voice. It was different but absolutely wonderful at the same time. "I don't know what was in that stuff…but I'm thankful for it." They stopped talking then, just looking around the dock. That's when they both spotted the broken tubes of serum. Jade muttered a curse under her breath. All of Dr. Erskine's research was now in their DNA. The rest of it was spilled across the concrete.

"C'mon," Steve stated nodding towards the way they came. "Let's get back to the base. They'll need us there." Jade quickly nodded her head and followed her friend towards the military base. People gave them strange looks as they walked down the roads. The wedding dress boutique was a complete mess. The workers were sweeping up the glass and readjusting the mannequins. They sent some particularly nasty glares towards the two. Both smiled sheepishly and apologized profusely, promising to pay for the damage caused. The army had some kind of…running into windows…insurance…right?

* * *

The walk back took longer, but they also weren't running to catch a criminal. Once arriving at the "antiques" store, Peggy was waiting outside for them. Her arms were crossed, her lips were twisted into a pout, and her foot was impatiently tapping on the ground. "Did you catch him?" She asked with her British accent.

"Yes," the two replied in unison.

"And?" She asked, expecting more.

"Suicide," Jade informed her. "Cyanide capsule."

"Did you get back the serum?" When there was a negative response, Peggy sighed. All of that work was wasted. "Any idea as to who he was?" You could almost hear Steve swallow in nervousness.

"He-he said 'Cut off one head, two more shall take its place…hail Hydra.'" Peggy visibly paled and her pout turned into an open mouthed stare. She checked around her, looking from side to side, and gestured for them to follow her inside.

As soon as they walked in, they were bombarded by military personal, journalists, and nurses. The latter was chosen to follow since they seemed to be the more important at the time. They were led back to a room with a few beds and medical equipment. A little bit too bubbly blonde nurse came over with bundles of clothes. She handed the respective bundles to each of them, her eyes lingering on Steve a little too long for Jade's liking.

_Keep your eyes to yourself, _she thought. A quick death glare at the nurse sent her scurrying away.

…Wait, what was she doing? Since when did she not want other women to look at Steve that way? Why did she care? _I'm just keeping an eye out for him. _Yeah…sure. 100% sarcasm intended.

Ignoring all of that, Jade led herself over to a small area and looked at the clothes. They had given her a tan knee length skirt, a tan button up, the proper undergarments, and a pair of brown shoes. How plain, though the skirt felt better than pants did. Maybe it was just a girl thing.

After changing, she came back from behind the curtain. Almost immediately, a nurse (A different one, this one was a redhead with a calming smile.) came over and brought her to the table next to Steve's. They proceeded into a series of medical tests, standard things like x-rays but it took a few hours for the full exam. "We just need to take some blood. Bad news is, it's going to be a lot. The good news is you get a cookie." She smiled wide and it made Jade giggle lightly. The nurse left to a cart and came back with a needle, syringe, tube, and containers. Jade glanced over to Steve. His usually twinkling blue eyes were dull and glazed over. He stared off into nothing. The red headed nurse looked over too. "He's just still in shock from the whole thing. I know how he feels. My grandfather died suddenly, completely out of the blue. It was life shattering."

Jade turned her attention back to the nurse. "Does it get any better?" She asked and then winced when the needle went through her arm. The blood started to flow through the tube.

"There are bad days and good days, but it helps if you've got someone to share the pain with." She nodded over to where Steve sat. Hopefully, they could get through it together.

Eventually the nurses filled up at least a dozen tubes of blood each. They took the thick needles out of their arms, wiped off the blood, and let them go. "I think you've got enough." He said dryly. The nurse ignored him and walked away. Steve got up from his seat and then walked over and helped Jade up. Though the help was not needed.

"Any hope of reproducing the program is locked in your genetic codes." Peggy said from where she sat across from them. "But without Dr. Erskine it will take years."

"He deserved more than this." Jade let her head fall down towards the floor, her thick curtain of hair covering her face. Peggy let her neck roll and then sighed breathlessly.

"If it could only work twice, he'd be glad it was you two." She diverted her attention to an open manila folder. She looked back up at them with a small smile across her ruby red lips. Steve was still skeptical though and he tried to see Jade's reaction. Though he could not see her face, Steve did not try to gain her attention. "Come with me, Colonel Phillips will want to see." Jade wordlessly follower her, keeping her eyes on the ground and her hands together behind her back. Going down the stairs, they could hear the voices and Colonel Phillips and Senator Brandt.

"Colonel Phillips, my committee is demanding answers!" The senator sounded extremely upset. But the colonel wasn't one for sympathy.

"Great, why don't we start with how a German spy got a ride to by secret instillation in your car? What do we got here?" The German's fancy submarine was suspended in the air as Howard Stark looked it over.

"Speaking modestly I'm the best mechanical engineer in this country." Jade rolled her eyes, not even trying to hide the annoyance. "But I don't know what's inside this thing _or _how it works. We're not even close to this technology."

"Then who is-"

"Hydra," Colonel Phillips answered the senator quickly. "I'm sure you've been reading our debriefing reports." The senator sucked in a sharp breath.

"I'm on a number of committees Colonel." Well denial isn't just a river in Egypt.

"Hydra is the Nazi deep science division." Peggy informed coolly. "It's led by Johann Schmidt, but he has much bigger ambitions." Senator Brandt took off his hat.

"Hydra's practically a cult. They worship Schmidt. They think he's invincible." It seemed that Colonel Phillips was becoming very frustrated and annoyed with the politician.

"What are you going to do about it?" He asked gruffly.

He inhaled sharply. Make that extremely frustrated and agitated with the senator. "Spoke to the President this morning, as of today the S.S.R. is being re-tasked." He walked up to where the agent and two super soldiers stood.

"Colonel?" Peggy asked in a surprisingly soft tone.

"We are taking the fight _to _Hydra. Pack your bags Agent Carter, you too Stark. We're flying to London tonight." Hearing this, Jade's head popped up. She repeatedly hit Steve on the arm, trying to get him to understand the meaning. As the colonel was walking away, Steve finally seemed to get it.

"Sir," They stood straight and tall. Colonel Phillips turned to face them. "If you're going after Schmidt, we want in."

Colonel Phillips seemed to have other plans though and he shot down theirs quickly. "You're an experiment. You're both going to Alamogordo." Steve shut his eyes tight and opened them.

"The serum worked-"

"I asked for an army and all I got was _you. You…_are not enough." He turned away. Steve and Jade put their heads down in defeat until they heard the clicking and clacking of dress shoes. They looked up to see Senator Brandt standing in front of them.

"With all do respect to the Colonel, I think we're maybe missing the point here. I've seen you in action Steve, Jade. More importantly, the country's seen it. Paper!" His assistant came scurrying over with a copy of the day's paper. One the front page was a picture of Steve holding up the car door as a shield and Jade was behind his. "The enlistment lines have been around the block since your pictures have hit the news stands." The head line read _**"Wednesday, June 23**__**rd**__**, 1943: NAZIS IN NEW YORK! MYSTERY MAN AND WOMAN SAVES CHILD!" **_They had done the experiment early enough in the morning that this article could have been rushed to the papers. "You don't take a soldier…a symbol…and hide him, or her, in a lab like that." It sounded so tempting. The senator led Steve away by the shoulder, the latter grabbed onto Jade's hand and pulled her along, stumbling her way with them. "Son, do you and your girl here-"

"Oh we're not together."

"Never the less, do you two want to serve your country on the most important battlefield of the war?" The two quickly shared a glance.

"Sir that's all we want." The senator smiled.

"Then congratulations," He held out his hand for Steve to shake. "You just got promoted." Steve hesitantly smiled while Jade's broke out into a full grin. "Here's my card." He handed them each a white business card with gold lettering on it. On it was a phone number and on the back was an address. "Show up to the address on Friday at three. We can work it all out then." When he left, Jade began jumping up and down in excitement.

She turned to Steve. "Would you like to join me to see a movie to celebrate?"

* * *

**Could this be a first date?**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**...No, sorry to disappoint xD I couldn't resist! No, they currently still feel like best friends. For now mwuahahahahah! Stay tuned my pretties and review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I AM SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SORRY THAT THIS TOOK SO LONG TO UPDATE! I do not deserve your guy's forgivness. I have been super busy lately with band, jazz band, homework, major projects, and just real life in general. Lately I've been just too tired to do anything. But I'm getting this chapter up now. Sure it's boring, kind of short, and a total filler, but it's a chapter! I will try my absolute best to get the next one up ASAP.**

**For my romance fans out there, there are some subtle hints of a romance. I hope you'll enjoy it. And Jade's sister-in-law becomes a bit more important!**

**Please please review even though I don't deserve it!**

**Guest Reviews:**

**Ali: Ah, I'm sorry my updates are so infrequent. I'm glad you liked the last chapter. I'm really sorry this took so long.**

**Jenny: OMG, thanks so much for reviewing all of those chapters! It makes me feel good. Thanks so so much for all your praise. I'm glad you liked it. So sorry this took so long.**

**Global100: Thanks so much! I tried to put as much detail as possible! And Jade is supposed to be that kind of character than can relate to anyone. She's not perfect and she goes through crap. She may be a superhero, but she's like any other girl. Thank you so so much! I'm sorry this took forever!**

**SheCap: Thanks! Oh god...Jade...dancing monkey...not going to be good. Lol Ahh you'll just have to wait to see what goes on with her bro! Thanks and I'm terribly sorry for the wait.**

**Guest: I promise I will keep writing. It may take me a while but I will not ditch this story! Thanks and I'm sorry for the wait.**

**Carly: Thanks. Omg yes, I love Steve and Peggy together. Unfortunately that wouldn't really work for this story lol but I do love them together. Thanks so much and I'm sorry this took forever!**

* * *

**Chapter 9: The Senator's Plan**

"_**The strength of a family, like the strength of an army, is in its loyalty to each other."-Mario Puzo-"The Family"**_

"No, no, I'll pay for it!"

"Stop being such a gentleman Brooklyn! I invited you to a movie, let me pay for it." Steve and Jade had met up the next day at the local movie theater. There weren't that many movies being made nowadays since a lot of actors were going off to war. Many of them were the short ones about what was going on or sometimes about famous people outside of the U.S. Jade once saw a movie on the princesses of England. But it was common that they would replay older movies. Jade's favorite was _The Wizard of Oz. _She loved it because of the silly songs and the bright colors. Her favorite part was the scene with the poppy fields and seeing Emerald City. It was stunning. So when she saw that a Brooklyn theater was having a special showing of it, Jade jumped at the opportunity to see it.

"Okay, how about this? I'll pay for the tickets and you can pay for the popcorn." They were now standing outside the theater, arguing over who would pay for the tickets and Jade was being unsurprisingly stubborn. This idea seemed to satisfy her though.

"Deal…well what are you waiting for? Go get us tickets!" He laughed at her and went to go pay. The line was fairly short and it didn't take too long for Steve to buy the tickets for the two thirty show. He walked over to her once more and held out his arm.

"Shall we?" She smiled brightly and nodded, holding onto the crook of his elbow as he led her into the open theater. It was small with few people. There were two…no three couples, an elderly woman, two children with what appeared to be their mothers and one with what appeared to be their father. Steve and Jade took their seats in the middle of the theater, more towards the back in front of the woman. Steve immediately started to devour the large bucket of popcorn. Seeing this and the fact that there was still at least another five minutes until the movie started (and Steve could now eat in proportions the size for two) Jade yanked the popcorn away from him, earning a groan in protest.

"Don't moan at me! You'll eat all the damn popcorn before the movie even starts!" He reached over to try and grab more, only resulting in her pulling it away. "No, no, no! You can have some when the movie starts."

"Pleeeaassee!"

"Fine…here." Steve smiled joyfully before being hit with a piece of popcorn. He blinked twice and the smiled slyly.

"You shouldn't have done that." Jade's face paled. She didn't even notice his hand sneak over to the bucket and take out several pieces of popcorn. Three pieces hit her face, one getting stuck in her hair in the process. Her jaw dropped and she let out a scoff from the back of her throat. Steve then found a piece of popcorn in his own hair and one on his shoulder. They were both laughing now and when Steve went to throw a handful of the fluffy, salty snack, a piece landed in the old woman's hair two rows below them. The lady reached up and picked out the popcorn from her silver hair and gave it a look before turning around to glare at the two.

Jade put her hand over her mouth while Steve tried to control the sniggers dying to escape. "Oh my God, we are so sorry ma'am!" The lady glared a second longer before the wrinkled corners of her eyes smoothed out some and a graceful smile adorned her worn features.

"It's no trouble. Can't put a stop to young love!" Jade nodded sheepishly before realizing what the woman had just implied. Steve seemed to catch it too because his face was flushed and his laughing had stopped.

"No, no ma'am, we're-we're not _together!_" Jade managed to stutter out. The woman's silver eyebrows arched upwards in question.

"Yeah, we're just friends ma'am!" Steve choked out while still incredibly red.

"Oh," the woman put her hand to one side of her mouth so Steve couldn't 'hear' what she was saying. "Then you better snatch him up quick dear. Don't want to miss your chance!" The woman did a quick once over of the blushing blonde who had obviously heard what the old woman said and winked at her. Jade gave a lopsided smile (something that Steve noticed and found quite adorable) and winked back.

"I will." Truthfully, Jade had no intentions of keeping that promise. Steve was her best friend. She wasn't supposed to have thoughts like that about them. For instance, the feelings she got after her transformation were completely normal, right? Any normal, healthy, female would think that way no matter the person. …Totally normal…right?

Steve snuck a glance over at Jade. Did she really mean that? Was she actually going to 'snatch him up?' Sure she was a pretty, well very pretty, but he didn't want that! Jade was such a good friend that it could completely ruin the friendship they had. But did she feel that way about him? "Uh Jade-"

"Shh!" Jade interrupted him. "The movie's starting!" Sure enough, the lights in the theater dimmed down so they were surrounded by the black darkness. The movie began to roll in its signature black and white. Steve had liked this movie before, but it was even better with Jade there with him. She just made the whole thing more fun. When the screen turned to the bright colors, Jade's eyes lit up in excitement and wonder and awe. It made Steve smile. She would sing along quietly with each song, the lyrics memorized by heart. Truthfully…she couldn't sing, but her enthusiasm made it good. Her favorite character was Glinda the Good Witch because of the sparkles and the gorgeous dress. Not to mention how pretty she was and how sweet she could be. It was one of Jade's girliest moments. There were two things that could get Jade to act like a stereotypical girl: Boys and gorgeous dresses.

When the poppy scene came along, Jade was bouncing in her seat. "Look at the pretty poppies!" She whispered to him. "They're my favorite flower. I want them in my bouquet for my wedding." Steve raised a questioning eyebrow.

"You already have your wedding planned?" He asked her.

She gave him an 'are you serious' look. "Every girl starts planning their wedding from the moment they see their parent's wedding album! I saw mine when I was ten. Things constantly change though. I've chosen my cake flavor seven times, five different flavors." He gave her another questioning glance, but simply rolled his eyes at her and continued watching the movie. It was official. Steve Rogers would never truly understand the female species.

* * *

Friday came along. At two-thirty, a cab with Steve in it stopped in front of Jade's apartment building. Luckily the Colonel hadn't planned on sending them to Alamogordo for another few days, so they were both allowed to go to their apartments. The cab driver honked his horn and Jade quickly dabbed on some more lipstick. She went with a totally different look that day. She had gone with a nice black pencil skirt that went to her knees, a red silk blouse with sleeves that flowed and then cuffed at the wrists to create a bubble like effect and red pumps to match.

Usually her makeup was fairly simple with very light colors. Bright reds used to make her look pale, but her skin was much tanner now. So the day before she had ventured off to the drug store and gotten some red lipstick. It actually looked fairly nice on her. She didn't even need blush since her cheeks already had a rosy tint to them. The lines of black eyeliner were thin so she didn't look…oh what was the word…like a tramp. Yeah…that was the word.

There were another few honks of the horn. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" She yelled out, even though she knew they couldn't actually here her. Grabbing her black coat and bag, she locked up her apartment and headed down the stairs to the street were the cab was waiting. Steve was waiting for her at the side of the car, his hands shoved into his pockets while he leaned against the yellow cab. The man quickly opened the door up for his friend and closed it once she was completely inside. He soon joined her and the car headed off out of Queens and towards New York City.

The car ride was silent. Neither had any idea what the senator had in mind for them. So they decided to let themselves form ideas in their heads. Jade was skeptical of what he had in mind. If they were going to go to war, wouldn't the senator have talked to Colonel Phillips? It just didn't seem right.

Stopping in front of the senator's office, Steve quickly got out once more to open her door and waited patiently until she got out, her heels clicking on the cement. "Here goes nothing," he muttered only loud enough for her to hear him. The door was glass and heavy with a large door handle painted sparkling gold. Inside, the floor was marble with a large matching desk off to one wall. A pretty red headed woman in a nice brown dress was sitting behind the desk, clicking away on a typewriter. The light ding signified the end of the page, and the rolling sound was heard when the paper was moved. The woman continued to type, but then stopped abruptly at the sound of Jade's heels. Her head popped up to reveal a set of dark blue eyes.

"May I help you?" She asked through very white teeth.

"We have a three o'clock appointment with the senator ma'am," Steve answered for the both of them. The secretary stood up with extreme urgency and ushered them down a hallway and to the elevator. She pressed the button for the fifth floor and left them to return to her job. The silvery elevator doors closed slowly and the lift creaked upwards. Jade breathed out slowly, oh so slowly. Sensing his friend tense up, Steve raised a curious eyebrow. "Are you okay?" He asked her with concern edging his voice.

Her eyes were closed and she was drumming her fingers along her thigh. "I don't like elevators. They terrify me when they squeak." Steve squeezed her hand to comfort her and she gave him a thankful smile. Finally the doors opened and Jade all but sprinted to the glass doors of the senator's office. Steve hurriedly caught up to her and knocked on the door. There was a muffled 'come in' and Steve opened the door for her to enter first. The senator was sitting behind a large, mahogany desk. His fountain pen was scratching against a piece of stationary. At the sound of his guests, he looked up and greeted the two with a wide smile.

"Good morning Steve, Jade, how are you two?" He asked and gestured to the two seats in front of his desk. The two soldiers sat down, Steve on the left and Jade on the right.

"Fine Mr. Senator, we're just a bit anxious to here what you have planned for us." Jade nodded slightly in agreement. It was so weird. She was being absolutely quiet while Steve was being confident. How was that possible? Maybe he was just better around politicians and such.

"That's good, and I can understand how you would be nervous, but let me reassure you that you'll be helping out your country in the best way you can." At this, their eyes lit up in excitement. That was exactly what both of them wanted. Eager to hear more, they urged the senator to continue on. "Now unfortunately we are unable to send you overseas to fight due to legal issues but we've got the next best thing for you." Jade was very skeptical now. He said it was the best way to serve the country, but wasn't the best way to fight in Europe? "Now we've put together a team to assemble a plan for both of you. Each one of you will be traveling across the country, coast to coast, all fifty states, to get the American people to join in on the patriotism."

That didn't sound too bad. The way to win the war was to get the whole country on your side. So it was super important to get everyone in on it. "What would that entail," Steve said for both of them, for Jade still was too nervous to use her voice.

"I'm glad you asked that son. Both of you will go on these…tours, shall we say, but on semi different schedules. Mr. Rogers, we've set you up for advertising war bonds. A war bond is a bullet in a soldier's gun. You sell bonds, bonds buy bullets, and bullets kill Nazis, so therefore you kill Nazis. Bam! You're a hero. Now for Jade we've got something a little different. I understand that as a woman, it's important to show how your gender is capable of doing more than what many assume." Jade's ears perked up. Noticing the sudden interest, the senator took this as a good sign and he internally smiled. "Even though many women are already helping, there are still others out there that believe they can't do anything. This is where you come in."

Jade cleared her throat, making a light squeaking sound. "Hmm...Uhh," she started, testing out her unused voice. "I…I assume I'll be encouraging women to get involved with the war." Senator Brandt looked pleased where this was going. It was going to be easier to convince them than he had previously thought.

"Precisely, you'll be encouraging women to work in the factories or join the Red Cross. Both are essential in this time of war and we need as many women joining as we can get. You'll also need to convince the men that it's okay to let their wives…sisters…girlfriends…daughters…etc. join the war effort. Nothing too complicated, but nothing too simple as well. Following that we plan for films, comics, merchandise, the whole shebang. America will love you both."

Steve looked over at Jade, signaling for them to talk about. She could tell he wanted to discuss this with her at length. "This all sounds wonderful, but do you mind if we take a few to think about. We should know our answer before we leave; we would just like to discuss this privately." She told the older man with a sweet smile. The senator gave an equally joyful grin and got up from his seat, directing them into the hallway and into another room across from his office.

"You can converse in here. I'll just be doing some paper work in my office; you just knock whenever you're ready." Both agreed and went into the room, Steve closing the door in the process.

"What do you think?" He asked her.

"Personally, I think we should go for it. We either take the senator up on his offer and do something good for the country or we get shipped off and tested on." Steve nodded and looked around. It was a fairly plain room. The walls were a cream color with a burgundy carpet. A single table with four chairs around it was set in the center. Off on one wall was a large chalkboard with a few pieces of white chalk and an eraser.

"I guess you're right, I just don't like the sound of this. It's…too nice sounding. You really think we should go for it?" Jade hesitated, but nodded slowly. There were two options: do this thing or be a lab rat. Jade. Hated. Rats…of any kind. "Ok then, let's do it." He held out his arm for her and she took it, even though they literally had to walk less than ten feet. The blonde knocked on the door lightly and opened it up. The senator looked up from paperwork, he was actually not lying about that, and smiled.

"So, have you come to a decision?" The two exchanged a looked; Jade's lips were pressed into a thin line.

"Yes, we've decided to take you up on your offer Senator Brandt."

* * *

"Excellent! Let's fill out some paperwork for it. It'll be quick and painless."

"OW! That hurt!"

"Well maybe if you stopped moving I wouldn't be stabbing you!"

"Well maybe if you knew how to do your job you wouldn't be stabbing me!"

"That's it; I can not work under these conditions. I quit!" Another two days later, Jade and Steve were taken to another government base. Though this time they were being fitted for costumes. Yes…costumes. Turns out part of the deal with the senator meant they'd be doing this whole thing basically wrapped in the American Flag. Jade was definitly not happy, but seeing as they had no other choice, Jade and Steve went along with it. Jade's seamstress was a sickly thin woman with boney arms, painted on eyebrows, dark roots, and no patience what so ever. After much stabbing, complaining, twisting, turning, and yelling, the woman had given up and dropped the entire thing all together. She put her stuff together and left the building despite the pleading of the senator's second assistant, May.

"Jade! She was the only seamstress available!" May practically screamed. She was a nice person whose personality could go from pleasant to annoyed faster than it took for Steve to eat a bucket of popcorn. "We need your costume by Monday and we have no seamstress! What are we going to do now?" Jade shrugged and basically ripped off the unfinished monstrosity the seamstress called her costume. It had had fringe, buttons, and sparkles all on the same dress. She put her flow-y yellow dress back on and sat down to eat her lunch: a turkey sandwich with a glass of water. "Jade this is serious; we can't just pick up any random seamstress off the street. This is a government program!" Jade shrugged again and took a bite of her sandwich, frowning when she tasted mayo. She had asked for no mayo.

"And I imagine you don't actually know any seamstresses personally now do you?" May asked her while tapping her foot. Jade was about to shrug when she remembered Allison, her sister-in-law. Allison had been a seamstress's apprentice for a while, having to help support her family. She was very close to taking on a full position when Jacob had proposed and the need for a job was no longer needed.

"My sister-in-law has seamstress experience." May's eyes bugged out and you could tell her excitement was growing.

"Really? Do you think you could get her down here right now?" Jade shrugged, meaning it was worth a shot. She got up from her chair and quietly strode over to the small black phone on a table. Dialing the number and then listening, she heard three soft tones before the other end pick up.

"_Hello?"_

"Allison? Hi, it's Jade/"

"_Jade? Oh my gosh, where have you been? We've been worried about you! Jasper said you were okay, but he wouldn't say where you were? Are you okay?" _Jade giggled hearing the blonde's happy voice.

"I can't really tell you what's been going on yet, but I am okay. Listen, do you still have your sewing kit?"

"_Um, yes I do. Is there a reason?" _It was obvious that Allison was very confused.

"Great, I need you to come to where I am. I've got a super important, secret, project I need you for. It's urgent, we're in dire need of a seamstress and I know you're best for the job!" There was a moment where the other end was quiet for a while. Jade feared the other girl had decided no and hung up.

"_Okay, give me the address. I'll be right there." _Her soft voice suddenly flew into the phone. Jade smiled widely even though she knew her sister-in-law couldn't see it.

"Thanks so much Ally!" Jade quickly gave her the address and hung up. May was standing behind her, waiting impatiently for an answer. "She said she'd do it! Don't worry she's completely trustworthy. There's no one else better for the job." May gave a grin back and rushed off to tell the guards to allow the new girl in.

They waited for Allison for a brief while. She wasn't too far away and got there quicker than expected. The blonde walked in, shyly carrying a large sewing kit.

"Jade? Can you tell me what's going on? I don't remember you being so tan…or tall…or curvy…gosh you look different." Jade laughed loudly, leave it to Allison to come right out and be confused.

"Sure, you can put your stuff next to the table." Allison followed orders and skipped over to the brunette. Jade proceeded to tell her everything: Dr. Erskine finding her, the training, the procedure, the man from Hydra, and the senator's plans. "That's why we need you. I need a costume for my shows and I annoyed my seamstress so much that she quit." Allison giggled bubbly.

"That's sounds _exactly _like you JayJay. I just can't believe that you've been in the army this entire time! I mean, I'm proud of you and all but it's just so weird. I'm glad someone's finally taking a stand for us." Jade scowled at the nickname the blonde had come up with for her. There weren't that many nicknames that you could get from Jadelynn, but Allison had chosen the most annoying one possible. There was Lynn or even just one Jay. But the girl had gone with JayJay, and Jade found it incredibly infuriating. Her scowl softened though when she finished.

"Don't call me that, just make me a stupid outfit!" Both of them laughed. "But thank you for supporting my decision to do this. Please, don't tell my mother about this!"

"Of course, I won't tell a soul! I'm here for you."

May walked in and introduced herself to the new girl, then pulled out various sketches of ideas and suggestions. There were three different styles. One was long toga like dress that fell to the knees that was blue with medium white stars all over it and a red sash. The second one was a strapless, sweetheart neckline corset top that was red and white stripes and then a pair of tight fitting blue pants with large white stars. Finally, the third was a dress going mid-thigh with long sleeves going off each shoulder. The entire thing was red and white stripes with a blue sash that had tiny white stars covering it.

Allison raised a perfect blonde eyebrow at the three designs. "So I guess they want you in a giant American flag?" Jade slumped her shoulders and nodded. "Okay well…all of these are…hideous. Seriously, I refuse to use any of these. But we can always mix them together." She threw in a wink and pulled out a pair of scissors, cutting away at the papers and taping the parts together.

"I like the way you think Ally. Now, make be an American icon!" Allison laughed and immediately went to work putting together the costume that would soon get America's people into the war effort.

* * *

**A/N: Once again, sorry for a long wait. Rememer, Jade doesn't actually know what kind of advertising they'll be doing. That's very important!**

**Did anyone catch the romance/wedding plug in there? Huh? I hear wedding bells! Well...they're pretty far away but they're there! Ah, I love romance!**

**Please please review! No flame please! Ciao bellas!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hey there guys! Gosh life his hectic! I got a brand new computer for Christmas and it took me a few weeks to get Microsoft Word downloaded on it. So that sucked a lot. And lately my internet has been bipolar too. I wish I could just drop everything, sit in bed and write with amazing internet. But...here it is! Finally I got this chapter done. It's unfortunately shorter than I wanted but it's something plus it's another step towards romance! I hope you enjoy it. Plus you finally get to figure out her name!**

**Note on Reviews: Unfortunately this time around I tried to keep up with the reviews as they came but my plan didn't exactly work out. I'm just getting so many per chapter that it's hard to keep track of each one. So thank you to everyone that reviewed. I thank you very much if you stuck around for the next chapter and I completely understand if you abandoned me!**

**The dress picture is not complete just yet but I'm working on it. The picture should be up within the week. So please check in with my website: clarinetgirl628fanfiction . weebly. com (Minus the spaces) There's pics and fanart and eventually that custom dress (which I'm very much considering making for halloween, mwuahahah!) Check it out and maybe if we got any outgoing people out there, send me some fan art!**

**Enjoy and Review!**

* * *

**Chapter Ten: Welcome Lady Liberty**

"_**Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved."- Helen Keller**_

"Do I really have to do this?" Jade was behind the large stage curtain, getting ready to make her first performance as a representative for the Red Cross. And she was _not _a happy camper.

At All.

In fact, when she found out that the representing she would actually be doing would be on a stage…with singers…and dancers…and chorus girls…she had backed out of the deal. The senator's assistant, May, went into complete panic mode, yelling and shouting at her to come back. _"NO! You can't just leave right now! We are literally a few days away from your performance! We have everything ready, we need you! America needs you!" _That had pulled at her heart strings. Jade decided to stay until not but ten minutes later Allison had showed up with her costume for the show. It took another half an hour to get Jade back again.

"Absolutely," Allison replied as she tightened the corset strings of the bodice. There was a sharp gasp from the wearer that made Allison drop the strings and take a step back from where Jade was supporting herself on a table. "Oh my god, what's wrong? Did I hurt you?" She asked panicked and quickly.

For a moment there wasn't a word from Jade. It worried Allison, who was wondering if she had somehow lost the ability to speak. "Nope," there finally was a small squeak. "One question though," she inquired with her voice sounding slightly strained.

"Yes?"

"I'm I supposed to be able to breathe?" There was a bubbly giggle that escaped from Allison.

"Of course not! It's a corset, it's supposed to be enough to suck everything in and you know…boost certain areas-"

"Okay, okay," Jade interrupted making a funny face. "I really didn't need to hear anything past it's a corset." This made Allison giggle even more before going back to her job.

"_Two minutes until show time!"_

"Okay," Allison concluded with one last pull. "You're all done. Take a look!" She led Jade to a mirror where a different girl was staring back.

The dress was short…a little too short for her taste but not horribly short, coming a bit past mid thigh. It was corset bodice with a sweetheart neckline that was blue with a glittery white star on her chest. The skirt was made of vertical red and white stripes. Her legs were covered by fishnet tights and then red heeled boots coming just below her knees. Two wide silver bands were on her upper arms, in line where the bodice started at the top. Around her neck was a blue choker with small white stars. The thing that was so different was above the neck. She had thick blue eyeliner and bright red eye shadow that was glittery. Thick and long fake eyelashes had been attached (Jade was scared that the adhesive would have gotten in her eyes). Her lips were full and bright red like her eye shadow, minus the glitter though. Covering her face was a silver masquerade mask that had stars in the corners.

She was supposed to have a _"weapon"_ to go along with the costume. Steve had gotten a shield. They gave her a light brown leather bullwhip. It had been attached to a small loop on the skirt.

Jade's thick dark hair was curled even more into loose curls and pulled up into a high ponytail with a glittery red bow. Dare she say it, she didn't look half bad.

"Well look at you hot stuff! Someone's going to get a few numbers tonight. Won't Steve be surprised?" Jade had told Allison all about Steve and what they had been through together. Of course the blonde asked if he was good looking. Jade had stuttered and changed the subject completely.

"What are you talking about? Steve's got his own shows to do." Allison shook her head with a wide grin.

"Nope, his shows don't start until tomorrow! So he came for your opening night! I invited him myself!" Jade's jaw dropped in disbelief. She felt the need to grab the girl by her shoulders and shake some sense into her.

"Are you nuts? You invited him!" Allison was not fazed by the brunette's angry gaping. In fact she seemed even bubblier, if that was possible.

"Yeah, and then I invited him to dinner after the show too! Along with Jasper…and your mother." There was a very loud shriek backstage and it had escaped from Jade's throat. Almost all of the crew and dancers stopped what they were doing to openly stare. Jade ignored them completely and continued ranting.

"You told my mother about this! Allison I told you not to tell anyone!" The blonde now looked very guilty and somewhat ashamed at what she had done. Allison had never _meant _to tell her mother-in-law. It was a simple slip up.

"I'm so sorry Jade! I didn't mean to! We were just talking and then the conversation turned to you and she said you had joined the Red Cross. And of course since you actually did, I asked her if it was you who told her about the whole thing and turns out she was talking about something completely different! But then it all just slipped out about…well…everything, I guess." Jade sighed and started to pick at her fingernails. They had been shaped to perfection, but now Jade was ruining them. Seeing this, Allison slapped her hands away from each other.

"I guess it's alright. She would have found out anyway. Better to get it over with now and I'd rather have Steve there with me to face her." Jade looked up at the blonde only to see one perfect eyebrow raised and a small smirk upon her pink lips.

"So…you and Steve…what is he, like...a brother…best friend…secret crush?" Jade's jaw tightened and her nose did a little twitch at the proclamation. Was Allison suggesting that she had feelings for Steve? That was absolutely preposterous! Steve was a very good friend, why couldn't anyone see that? They were at that training camp from the fall of '42 to the early summer of '43 and not a single person had even mentioned the thought of _feelings _for each other. Now suddenly she was even hearing it from little old ladies!

"Steve is my best friend Allison! Get that through your head!" Allison just shrugged and looked at the wall clock.

"It's show time missy! Better get on stage and wow that crowd, America's Sweetheart!" Jade raised an eyebrow and was push away towards the lowered curtain. _This is it. I can do this. Just breathe Jade. You'll be fine. So what if you're a show girl. It's for America! Be proud. I can do this. _And then there was music playing. It was a very classic sounding tune that was jazzy and could easily go on stage. There were singers singing a song about America's Sweetheart protecting the nation.

But Jade couldn't hear a thing. She heard her cue and walked through the curtain on the stage. There was a loud roar of cheering and applause, but it was muffled. Jade could hear her heart racing; the blood was pounding in her veins, making a loud drum beating sound in her ears. Every once in a while there would be a pause from the singers so she could talk to the crowd with a fake smile plastered on her face as she stoically stood with her hands on her hips.

"_While our boys are overseas, we all know it's important to make sure we keep them safe! But too many people are wondering what they can do!"_

The music carried on. There were those two words again: America's Sweetheart. Was that what they were calling her already? She didn't want to address the crowd as that. It kind of sounded conceded. Hi! I'm America's Sweetheart; even though most of the country doesn't even know me they can already claim me as their perfect little princess.

No…just no.

She thought up some ideas and quickly picked the best sounding one, hoping it was good.

"_I'm…Lady Liberty! And I'm here to let you know that no matter your age or gender, there's something you can do to help! Volunteering for the Red Cross can help out our troops by simply putting together care packages for the soldiers over in Europe."_

The crowd was ecstatic. Most of it was little kids with their parents. At first, Jade was a bit uptight, but as the show went on she became more comfortable. The children in the audience helped her greatly. They would shout to her, like she actually was a superhero taking off time just to see them. Jade would get them involved by asking questions and simply having fun. At one point, an actor dressed as Adolf Hitler was supposed to come on stage and try to "eliminate" Lady Liberty.

"So remember kids, every little thing you do to help out America is one step closer to winning the war!" She was stopped by the kids in the audience yelling to her, trying to get her attention.

"Turn around miss!"

"Behind you Lady Liberty!"

"He's behind you!" And at just the right moment she turned around to "knee Adolf Hitler" in the groin and the actor slumped over in fake pain. The little kids cheered and she finally caught the sparkling eyes of Steve. He smiled widely at her and laughed a bit, cheering with the children on either side of him. Jade smiled back breathlessly until the show was over.

"That's all the time I have for today guys! I'm Lady Liberty, telling you to support your nation in this time of war! Join the American Red Cross!" There was one final cheer from the audience and Jade practically ran back behind the curtain to get changed for dinner.

Jade traveled over to her makeup vanity and wiped away the glittering eye makeup. She replaced it with thin black eyeliner and mascara. A touch up of red lipstick and the bow out of her hair and all that was left was to change her clothes.

"Miss Callaway!" Jade turned around in her chair to see May clicking her heels her way. "Excellent job Jade! Stupendous job out there, I love the name Lady Liberty! Adds character to your persona! This is going to go far! You've got tomorrow off; we'll see you in two days for the last show in New York!" May flashed her a wide smile. She was a generally nice woman that Jade didn't mind having around. "And by the way, your family and Mister Rogers are here. Should I send them back here?"

Jade permitted their entrance and went behind a changing screen to put on her dinner clothes, only to find that she could get her corset off. She muttered some curse words and frantically tried getting off. She was succeeding at all which only frustrated her more and released some more profanities.

"Having a little trouble there ma'am?" Jade stopped what she was doing yet didn't remove her hands from behind her back at the sound of the familiar deep voice. She quickly snapped her head to look at a grinning Steve while a piece of her dark brown hair fell on her face. She blew it away and smiled.

"Steve! Hi! It's good to see you! Um…yeah…I'm having…a bit of trouble here. Do you…do you think you could help me out?" He laughed and went over behind the screen to start undoing the corset strings while Jade held onto the dress so it wouldn't slip and fall. That would be incredibly awkward.

"So your sister in law invited me to dinner. I hope you don't mind that I accepted. I just really wanted to see you again. We haven't seen each other in a week or two now…I missed you." _He missed me? _Jade wondered and then there was this strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. It was strange like…oh no…butterflies. Why was she getting butterflies in her stomach?

"No, I'm glad you accepted. My mother just found out about this whole thing and I want you to be there for me when she releases her wrath. Plus I'd like you to meet my brother. I think you guys would get along." There was no response from Steve. Jade felt the strings finally come lose and Steve's hands left her back. She turned around to face him. His ocean blue eyes were staring at her intently. _What's he looking at me like that for?_

Steve couldn't help but stare at her. Jade had really changed since he first met her. He had never truly looked at her before, but gosh she was beautiful. It was true, Steve had missed her. It had been almost painful to be away for so long. She had quickly become a best friend to him like Bucky was. But now it was something different. Whenever he was around her he got these strange…feelings. The way her jade eyes sparkled just made his heart melt. His train of thought was interrupted by her perfect slim fingers snapping in front of his face. "Huh, what did I miss?"

"Geez Brooklyn! What land did you doze off to? Get out of here so I can change before my family comes here so we can go to dinner. They'll be coming soon." Steve complied and went around, wandering back stage. That was weird. He wouldn't stop looking at her with a goofy grin. She ignored it for now and slipped the dress off. She replaced it with a robin's egg blue floral print dress and brown pumps with straps. She put her hair down into its natural waves.

"Jade, where are you short thing?" Jade closed her eyes and sighed in contentment. That was Jasper's voice. She went around the screen to find Allison, Jasper, and her mother wandering around like Steve had been (who knows where he had went) looking for her. "I can't find her ma! Nobody even looks like her!"

"Well just keep looking Jasper! She's your sister for God's sake, she can't be_ that _hard to find." Jade cleared her throat to gain the attention of the trio. Their heads popped over to her. Each reaction was very different. Allison, having already seen her, had a wide grin and was already ready to jump over and hug her.

Jasper's jaw had dropped, almost to the ground. This could not be his big sister. This woman was very, _very _different.

JoAnne just stared at her wide eyed with a hand covering her mouth. If Jade could see correctly (which she was sure she could since the procedure had made her vision perfect) there was a small tear in the corner of her mother's eye. "Holy sh-"

"Jasper Michael Callaway you watch your mouth!" He quickly snapped his mouth shut and just stared at his sister in complete shock. "Oh wow, look at you!" JoAnne walked up to her daughter and held the girl's face in her hands. "My…my baby girl looks so beautiful! Not that you didn't before but now you just look so gorgeous! If this is the results sign me up for this super secret serum!" Jade literally wanted to face palm right then and there. Her mother wasn't that great with keeping her mouth closed.

"Mother! You're not supposed to know about the serum! Keep quiet about it!" JoAnne nodded, tight lipped and smiled warmly. "You've grown into such a beautiful young girl."

"You're not mad momma?" The older woman sighed heavily.

"This was going to happen sooner or later. I couldn't prevent it no matter what. I just simply gave up. Just…just promise me you'll be okay…and that you won't get hurt." Jade nodded curtly and hugged her mother.

"I promise mom, I'll come home."

"And could you at least bring home a man?"

"MOTHER!"

JoAnne chuckled and removed herself from her mother's arms to look at her younger brother. His dark brown hair was slicked back. He had these baby cheeks but defined features as well with sparkling brown eyes like pools of mud. Everyone in Jade's family had dark brown hair and deep brown eyes. She was the only one that had green eyes. Jasper was looking at her open mouthed and in shock.

"What are you and what have you done to my sister?" Jade just rolled her eyes and pulled him in for a tight hug. Jasper seemed to relax some now that his sister was in his arms, safe and sound. "I really don't approve of this…but I can't stop you like ma said. So just…don't get killed or something. And no bringing back any guys!" Jade giggled happily. It was such a joy to see her family again.

"There's…there's someone that I want you guys to meet."

* * *

**A/N: Oooh! I wonder who she wants them to meet ;D**

**No I did not include a full out song and speech.**

**No I do not regret it.**

**I may be a decent writer but I am HORRIBLE at writing songs. Horrible. Like really bad. So bad it's scary...I think you guys get the point. But it's of course just supposed to be a cute little song involving America's Sweetheart.**

**HER NAME HAS BEEN REVEALED! WELCOME LADY LIBERTY TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE! Even though she's just in my head...**

**Hoped you liked!**

**Fun fact: The title of the story, America's Liberty, is inspired by Jade's superhero name and two other things mixed. On one hand it shows that she is the United States hope for the war. She belongs to the U.S. but not in a weird way. **

**On the other hand, it's supposed to represent the eventual romance between Steve and Jade. It's short for Captain America's Lady Liberty and can be reversed as Lady Liberty's Captain America showing that they belong to each other because they're in love...eventually...I swear. Thanks so much, review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: ok so something went wrong with the link so I'm trying to fix it and reload it. Bear with me guys**

** Omg guys I'm back sooner than I know all of you expected. Surprise!**

**I LOVE FLUFF and that's basically what this chapter is. I really like it because it shows true emotion. So I hope you guys enjoy it too. **

**Costume is almost done just needs some coloring and a few more tweeks and then it's ready. Remember, clarinetgirl628fanfiction . weebly . com with out the spaces!**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Guest Reviews:**

**Guest: In stoic voice: "I will always come." I just love you guys too much to just leave you! Thanks so much and I'll try not to make the waits for updates so long. **

**Ali: I'm glad I'm back too. I hit a point where I lost all inspiration but I sat down and literally forced myself to start a chapter and eventually got it done. It just took some motivation. Jade's family is not gone yet so be prepared for what is to come! Thanks for the review!**

**Levicorpyutani: Thanks so much. I love Lady Liberty too. I'm glad I didn't disappoint my readers and I hope this update is soon enough.**

**gohan's girl: Oh sexy Steve, how we love you! :3 Thanks for the review!**

**Jinglehells: Your welcome for the update. I'm sorry it took so long. I was in a huge slump with all my writing. I would sit there and nothing would go through my head. Thanks for the advice. I try not to give too much away but I think I get too excited sometimes. Thanks for understanding about the song and no I never really liked that part of the movie either though I understand that it was necessary for his backstory. I'm glad my version wasn't annoying. It's ok I ramble allll the time and chapter 11 is coming reaaalll soon wink wink Thanks for the review!**

**2bornot2b: Thanks so much for the review and I'm so glad you all liked the chapter. Her real costume will be somewhat similar to her stage costume in a way that Steve's is similar to his costume so it's going to be a bit more battle friendly! **

**Read, Enjoy, and Review!**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: Let's Just Escape**

"_**Friends show their love in times of trouble, not in happiness"- Euripides**_

Jade's mother stared at her questioningly with her right eyebrow raised. Who in the world could her daughter be introducing to them that they didn't already know. Was it a man? She hoped it was a man. Hopefully it was a very _handsome _man, because any man Jade usually brought home was never really the right type to keep around.

Allison of course was incredibly excited to meet Steve for the first time. That's the only person it could be, right? According to her sister in law he was quite the looker. Well, she never actually replied when Allison had asked her that but either way she avoided the subject so it had to be a positive response.

Jasper was very skeptical. Who was she introducing? Jasper prayed to whatever god there was (he was never really religious like his mother was) that this person was either a. female or b. a non attractive man. Or maybe even a dog…that worked too. Jasper didn't want to deal with any asshole men making a move on his big sister. Like Howard for instance, he was always trying to win Jade over by sucking up and buying her love. That didn't make the chocolate eyed boy happy whatsoever. Truthfully, he was hoping she had met a pretty girl and decided to be best friends with her and then introduce her to him.

Not much had happened during the time Jade was away. The only huge thing that did happen was when Jordan, his now EX –girlfriend had officially crossed the line by stating that Jade was basically an idiot for joining the Red Cross and that if it was Jordan's daughter she would have back-handed her right then and there. At dinner that night, Allison, JoAnne, and Jasper himself had all stared at Jordan like she had committed a sin. "How dare you speak about my daughter that way!" Jordan had been quite rude about Jade before, but Jasper had ignored it, saying that she didn't really understand what Jade was truly like.

But Jordan had crossed the line that night and Jasper broke up with her the next day. It had actually felt good. He wasn't weighed down anymore by her snarky remarks or rudeness. He could be himself once more. Jordan had always brought out his bad side. So now he was "back on the market" and that wasn't too bad…most of the time. He missed the feeling of having someone to come home to every night. He was twenty now, having his birthday been in January. He was still in college with a part time job at a mechanic's shop and his days were quite busy. They became lonely with no one to come home to.

Back to this mystery person, Jasper was suspicious and narrowed his eyes at Jade. "Is it a he or a she?" He asked her quite openly. Jade rolled her eyes, resisting the urge to slap the protectiveness out of him.

"Relax tiger; don't get your panties in a twist. It is in fact a man who just happens to be my best friend. He'll be joining us for dinner tonight." Steve had migrated closer to the family and was making casual conversation with a member of the stage crew. "In fact, there he is now. Steve, come here!" The blond popped his head up in Jade's direction and excused himself politely from the conversation. The crew member smiled and waved before Steve walked over to the Callaway family. "Guys this is Steven Rogers, my best friend!"

Jasper's eye twitched, literally twitched at the sight of the handsome blonde man wearing khakis, a button up plaid shirt, and a brown leather jacket, which was normal wear for someone of his age. The man actually looked quite casual compared to Jasper's white dress shirt, black suit coat, and navy blue tie. JoAnne Callaway was literally beaming at the Steve. Her daughter had met _this _young man and _didn't _pursue any romantic relationship with him? The girl sure had good resistance, she could say that for sure.

JoAnne's hand suddenly sprang out from her side to in front of her. Steve almost jumped at her enthusiasm, but being a gentleman, he shook it nonetheless. "It's a pleasure to meet you Steven." She said with a tight smile.

"Please, call me Steve ma'am." Jade had to physically remove her mother's hand from Steve's seeing as how she wouldn't stop shaking his hand. Jade sent Steve an apologetic smile.

"Steve, this is my mother JoAnne Callaway, my brother Jasper, and my sister in law Allison." He shook Allison's hand next.

"Allison, it's nice to meet you. I believe we talked on the phone earlier. Thank you for inviting me to dinner tonight." Allison would have swooned right there backstage if she wasn't married already. He could talk casually to the pretty girl seeing as she was already married and that didn't make him nervous at all. Steve stuck his hand out towards Jasper who only crossed his arms and stared at Steve's slowly retreating hand.

"Jasper, don't be rude to Mr. Rogers!" JoAnne nearly screamed at her youngest child.

"So…Steve, what do you do for a living?" His name rolled off Jasper's tongue with a slight bitterness; like he really didn't want to say it. Steve suddenly felt like he was being interrogated and through a force of habit from being small before, he felt intimidated.

"I'm…I work for the senator currently, but being in the same situation as your sister, I hope to join the army soon." Jasper narrowed his eyes like he did before and only nodded mid thought.

"What do you plan to do after the army?" Steve stood open mouthed for a second while Jade's face was going red from frustration. To say that her brother's actions were making her upset was an understatement.

"Jasper you knock this off right now or so help me God I will-"

"It's alright Jade; I have a degree from an art college in New York. I hope to do some work as an artist for anything really. As long as I enjoy it and it makes me enough money to support myself and maybe one day a family." Jasper internally saw this as a reasonable answer, but wouldn't admit it. He only puffed out his chest to seem more intimidating.

"Yankees or Mets," He asked finally. Jade closed her eyes and took a deep breath while Steve's eyebrows furrowed at the abrupt switch in direction.

"Um…Dodgers?" He replied, the single word coming out more like a question than answer. Jasper noticeably exhaled in some sort of relief and finally shook the confused blonde's hand.

"It's nice to meet you Steve, I'm Jade's younger, handsome, amazing brother Jasper."

Jade rolled her eyes at the fellow brunette. "You forgot modest Jazzy." Jasper's eyes narrowed once more, only this time they were directed at Jade.

"Don't call me Jazzy or so help me Jade I will burn every notebook you've ever written in." Steve's eyes widened by how extreme this sounded, but Jade only laughed lightly.

"You do and you might find some scratches on those new rims you got for that car of yours." And that's how it went on for a whole three minutes. It was interesting to watch the banter of the Callaway siblings. Then Steve vaguely remembered that Jade had another brother off in the war and he wondered what it would be like with all three of them in a room.

"Alright, alright knock it off you two! We have a reservation at that new restaurant and if we don't leave right now we will be late!" Jade and Jasper immediately stopped and went back to smiles and giggles. They started to leave towards the exit and Jade immediately noticed the lack of Steve following. She turned around with her lips pursed. There he was, standing there awkwardly where they were all standing once before. She motioned for him to follow the Callaway family and he obliged, though still feeling awkward.

"Don't worry, they're not that bad once you get to know them. They can be kind of annoying sometimes, but they're family and family is family." Jade led him out through the exit door and they caught up to the rest of their group.

* * *

The restaurant Jade's mother had made reservations too was upscale and offered them privacy with it being so new. Few people actually knew about the restaurant due to their lack of advertising. They kept their business modest unlike the other restaurants slowly popping up and telling the entire world about their arrival. It offered a mix of cuisine that seemed standard but was supposed to be the best there was. Their group of five was given a table near the back and their drink orders were taken quite quickly. The group stayed silent while looking over the menu for what they wanted. Soon their waitress came back with their drinks and took their orders. Once the woman had left again to put in their orders, silence took over them once more.

"How-how did you two meet?" The table was rectangular. Jasper sat on the end near a half wall. Jade's mother and Allison sat on one side together while Jade and Steve sat on the other.

"Um," Jade glanced over at Steve who had taken a sudden interest in the table cloth. "Well we both were chosen for a government program you guys aren't supposed to know about. I'll…I'll end it there." Jade's mother blinked twice at the vague description. Jade didn't want to talk to her mother about this. Especially since it was top secret stuff that she wasn't supposed to know about. Thank God she didn't know too much about it. The woman seemed strained, like she was holding something back.

"Damn it Jade! I told you not to enlist and you directly disobeyed me! I already have one child in this stupid war; I do not need another!" JoAnne had finally erupted. She had held it in the majority of the night but she couldn't handle it any longer. JoAnne had _said _she wasn't mad, but it was a lie. She was furious beyond belief.

"Mother! You cannot control me anymore! I am a grown woman and I can make my own decisions!" Jade put her face in her hands and rubbed her temples. This was not the conversation she wanted to have at the time, especially with Steve there with them. This was just like the first time she told her mother she tried to enlist. Though this time was a bit worse.

"You don't need to be out on a dirty battlefield getting shot at! A woman does not need to be fighting. You need to be at home doing what women should be doing! You need to get married and have children and just have a normal life!" Jade pulled her head out of her hands and rolled her eyes.

"Do you really think I can be normal now? I just went through a procedure that changed my damn DNA mother! I can never be normal again! I'm now technically considered the government's property. My chance at a normal life is over! Now stop this before it gets out of hand. We don't need to be doing this while Steve's here!" Steve was sitting in his seat trying hard not to run away from the restaurant until he was several…miles away.

"You are not the government's property! They don't own you like some real-estate! And Steve is perfectly fine!" They both looked over at Steve who was now squirming in his seat uncomfortably.

"I-I think I'm just going to go-"

"NO!" Jade and her mother both shouted at the same time at the panicked blonde. He was extremely confused and didn't know what to do. Steve had never sat there listening to a family argue like that. He felt out of place and didn't want to intrude on a family moment. "No," Jade reassured in a much calmer voice. "You don't need to leave. This is a dinner for all of us including you. Mother we will continue this conversation later when we _don't _have company, okay?" Reluctantly, JoAnne agreed with her daughter just as their food came out. Steve had never been so relieved to see a waitress coming.

The food had been a silencer of sorts. The group was too busy eating their dinners to say anything. All that was heard was the quiet murmurs of other patrons at the restaurant and the noises of glasses clanking and forks scraping against plates. Jasper and Allison had stayed silent during the whole ordeal, not wanting to cause anymore of an argument.

Jade couldn't stand the silence. She never could. It always seemed so lonely and depressing to her. So she decided it would be her to break the silence first. "Mother, I want you to know that I did what I did because it's what I wanted to do. It wasn't that I felt I had to or I had no choice. It was simply because I wanted to. It was all my choice. This is what I was meant to do." There was still silence around the table. Noticing Steve had finished his meal (his two meals actually, that man could eat a whole cow and still be hungry) Jade smiled at him. It was a gesture that he gladly returned. "Steve would you like to join me for a walk?" He nodded curtly and said goodnight to the rest of Jade's family, leaving money to help pay for his share of the bill after being denied the chance of paying for all of it.

* * *

He followed Jade out the doors of the New York restaurant and they ambled down the dimly lit sidewalk in peace. There was no longer a heavy tension in the air. It felt better to just unwind and relax. "I'm sorry you had to here all that," Jade apologized. "My mother and I just don't see eye to eye. We never really have. She never really approves of what I do. She doesn't approve of my writing or my choice for the army. I never got to go to college because she said I didn't need to and I didn't have the money. She told me that women didn't need such a fancy education because it wasn't necessary. She thinks that just because she didn't go to college and she turned out okay that I will too." Jade's heels were clicking against the pavement as they walked. It was a quiet night with a slight chill.

"I didn't have that much money growing up either. My parents were Irish immigrants. My dad worked while my mom stayed home to take care of me. It was hard being a kid. I was scrawny of course, plus I was Irish Catholic so I would get beat up all the time. I'd come home to my mother while she was cooking whatever Irish dish that day had planned and she'd take one look at me and smile sadly. That was it. Just a smile. Never asked what happened or why or who. If it was a scrape I'd get a band aid. If it was a black eye I'd get ice. But whatever injury I had, she'd always take care of me. My dad died when I was a child and it was hard for us. My mom had to get a job to support us, but it was too much stress on her. She died of pneumonia a little while after. I got put in an orphanage where I met Bucky. Never did get adopted." Steve looked down at Jade only to see a small smile on her face. "Why are you smiling? I just told you a depressing story and you're smiling?"

Jade's smile dropped suddenly, realizing what it looked like with her smiling slightly. "Oh…my god I'm so sorry. No I was just imagining a cute little Steve running around with a huge grin on his face…not a care in the world." Once he smiled too, Jade went back to smiling as well. "You'll have to show me a picture sometime."

"Only if I get one of you." Jade smiled up at him a bit wider and agreed. The streetlights were reflecting off his blue orbs. His blonde hair only made them stand out more. Jade loved the color of his eyes. They were soothing to her and could calm her down quickly. Why was she thinking like this? Was it…was it possible she had feelings for Steve?

No! Absolutely not; Steve was her best friend. You don't get _feelings _for your best friend! But he was just so sweet and handsome. No, she couldn't think that way! It wasn't right. "-So will you?" Steve pulled Jade out of her confusing thoughts and she looked at him with her eyebrows pushed together.

"What?" She asked him with an obviously confused tone.

"I asked if you were going to come see my show's opening night since I came and saw yours. It's only fair; I'll even take you out for dinner after. Do you want to come?" He was smiling at her even wider than before or even wider than she was smiling at him.

"Yeah sure, I'd love to Brooklyn." He was beaming down at her in pure joy. Steve had been feeling very confused lately. Originally, when he had met Agent Peggy Carter, he had thought he had feelings for her. But they never really "clicked." And then when he was away from Jade, all he did was miss her. He loved to make her laugh because it was sweet and sounded like bells. What did this mean though? He always felt funny around her, almost like he was content at the moment. It was a refreshing feeling that he didn't mind every once in a while. "So anyways, I'm real sorry you had to sit there through that. I just can't imagine what it would have been like if I mentioned my father."

"What happened to him?" Jade folded her arms around herself to keep her body heat. She shivered lightly, but Steve had noticed the small movement and immediately took off his jacket and put it around her shoulders. She smiled gently at him. Jade leaned against him as they walked and Steve put an arm across her shoulders. She loved it. He smelled like peppermint and coffee beans and was warm like a crackling fire.

"He died when I was little. My father had cancer and he died when I was eight. I cried during the entire funeral. My mother didn't shed a tear though, well at least not until she was alone. She needed to stay strong for us. I caught her slip up once though. We just held each other's hands and cried. It's been one of my favorite moments I've ever had with her because we just understood each other without saying a single word." Steve didn't reply to that. He simply held her closer as they walked farther away from the restaurant. "I don't cry anymore because…because I don't think I have any tears left."

"…Do-do you want to go somewhere fun?" He asked her suddenly. She looked at him puzzled but said yes and he grabbed her hand to lead her away towards a taxi. Steve whispered to the driver their destination.

"Where are we going?" She asked him.

Steve only smiled.

* * *

The bright lights of Coney Island and its many amusement parks were shining brightly against the darkness of the sky. There was loud music and the smell of delicious foods was everywhere; you couldn't escape them. Steve was already pulling Jade through the entrance while practically running. They were laughing merrily. This was so much better than dinner with her family.

Jade had been to Coney Island twice in her life. Her father took the family there for vacation when she was six and then they went back a few months after he died. Her mother thought it would be good for them to have some fun in light of recent events.

"Have you ever been here before?" She asked the overly happy man.

"Three times, my father had been saving up money for it and then once he died my mother combined that with what extra she made at work and took me. And then Bucky and I went twice together after we got out of the orphanage." They bought their tickets and he led her through the different parks. Steve loved the Wonder Wheel because it had always been the only ride that didn't make him feel sick and he made her go on it at least five times. In return, Jade made him go on the wooden roller coaster three times even though it made Steve sick after the second time. Luckily his stomach was now a lot stronger than it was before.

"You want something to eat?" He asked her after their fourth time on the Wonder Wheel. She nodded joyously and he got them an elephant ear to share. She smiled at the warm, sugary fried dough and didn't hesitate to dig in. Midst eating (with delicate bites by the way, she wasn't a pig!) Jade had managed to get some powdered sugar in her hair. Steve ran the strand through his fingers to get it out and then tucked the strand behind her ear. He smiled down at her.

It was a cheesy and corny romantic moment and Jade didn't want it to ever go away. Those butterflies were back and they nearly exploded in her stomach when he smiled with his perfect white teeth. And then she realized the situation they were in and she turned her head away back to the empty paper plate. "I'll-I'll go throw this out." She left Steve standing dumfounded, wondering if he had done something wrong. On the contrary, he had done something right. It may have felt a little _too _right to Jade.

She returned by his side when Steve noticed a game booth across from where they were standing. It was the one where you threw the baseball at the stacked milk bottles. Steve had never been able to win that game. His throws were always too weak. But now with his newfound strength he wanted to see what he could do. "Come on," He took her by the hand once more and led her to the game booth. Steve gave the man his payment and was handed three worn baseballs.

"Steve what are we doing at a carnival game?" He shushed her and picked up the first ball. He took position like he saw every pitcher at a Dodgers game do. He moved forward and let the ball fly from his hand. It went directly in the center and shattered the top bottle and knocked down the bottom two. The booth owner took off his Yankees cap and scratched his balding head in bewilderment. Jade giggled loudly at this while Steve picked out a smaller prize. It was a stuffed puppy with big round eyes.

"Here," he handed the puppy to Jade and she took it happily.

"I'm going to name him…Brooklyn." She declared with a smile that stretched from ear to ear. Steve only laughed and they continued on through the park.

* * *

At the end of the day, Steve dropped Jade off at her apartment where she promised to come see his opening show. She was tired from the day's events but was happy there wasn't another confrontation with her mother. Jade unlocked her apartment only to hear the phone ring right away. She ventured over to the black rotary dial phone and picked it up off the base to stop the incessant ringing.

"Hello?" She asked softly into the receiver.

"_Oh my God you sneaky devil! Where in the world did you two go?" _ Jade internally groaned at the bubbly voice of Allison. This night was not something she wanted to discuss with her.

"We just went for a walk Ally and then he took me to Coney Island. We went on the rides, we got an elephant ear, and he won me a stuffed animal it was no big-"

"_He won you something?" _She asked with a bit too much excitement.

"Yes, is there anything wrong with that?" She asked skeptically and instinctively holding onto Brooklyn the stuffed dog.

"_No, no, there's nothing wrong with that. Steve's taken quite a liking to you hasn't he?"_ Jade's eyebrows furrowed at Allison's casual proclamation.

"I don't know what you're implying oh sister in law of mine, but I'm not sure I'm quite happy with where this is going. How many times do I have to tell you that Steve and I are just friends?"

"_Uh huh, yeah, sure, I'll be expecting a full detailed report no later than tomorrow at seven in the evening!"_

"Okay Allison you keep on dreaming."

"_You know it does have a nice ring to it." _Allison stated vaguely while seemingly in deep thought.

"What does?" Jade asked with a curious and somewhat frightened tone.

"_Mrs. Jade Willow Rogers."_

"ALLISON!" The older girl had already hung up.

* * *

**A/N: Ah and there it is guys: the fluffy Chapter 11. I'm trying to get to the action as soon as I can guys but it never really came into the movie until like halfway through so it's a bit hard since there's a lot I still want to put in here. I hope you enjoyed it and please leave a review!**

**Fun Fact: I had 3 original ideas for Jade's superhero name:**

**Lady Liberty**

**Miss America**

**and Miss Liberty...I did not want to do Miss America because I thought it sounded too much like the pageant plus there already is a Miss America in the Marvel Universe who was apart of the Invaders with Steve and Bucky. At the time I wasn't happy with Lady liberty because it was the most common thing ever and everyone always chose that so I went with Miss Liberty for a very long time. Then I just wrote it on a piece of paper one day and I just hated it all of a sudden. It didn't sound right to me anymore. So I switched to Lady Liberty because even though it's the most common thing it also makes the most sense. **

**Also for some people (not sure if there are any but I'm just throwing his out there) that believe their feelings are developing too quickly and unrealistically, you have to remember that Captain America starts sometime in 1942 and ends in late 1943. They were at that training camp for a decent amount of time so they've known each other for longer than it seems! Hope you guys enjoyed!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Hey guys, I really hope this update didn't take too long. I'm trying to get updates out there. Unfortunately I was sick this week which drained me of my energy. I didn't want to do anything at all, let alone grab my computer and start thinking. It hurt my brain. A lot. But anyways I managed to get this chapter done.**

**I'm super sorry for the issues with the last chapter and the URL, but it is now fixed and readable so if you have not read chapter 11 I recommend you go read that before reading chapter 12. **

**I hope this one works out well and I hope you guys enjoy. Please review!**

**Guest Reviews:**

**Jinglehells: Oops, was that update too quick? . I was really proud of myself though! I can promise you that the rescuing of the POWs will come very soon. If all goes right I'm hoping it will be chapter fourteen. Thanks so much for the review!**

**Levicorpyutani: Yes her full name is Jadelynn Willow Callaway! I'm glad you like it. I got her middle name from an online web search of "middle names that go with Jade"…It worked though so it couldn't be too bad. Thanks so much!**

**Ali: I'm glad I surprised you with that last chapter and I hope this next one isn't coming too late!**

**2bornot2b: Oh Jade, can't just admit your feelings can you? It's so hard not to just like put it in right now just like let it all out but I don't want it too soon lol**

**SheCap: Oh no! I think we had a misunderstanding! When I said 'bro' I was referring to finding out more about her brother in the army! Sorry for the confusion! I think I kept her calm for the dancing monkey thing because even though Jade isn't into that type of thing, it's either that or get sent for testing so she figures I'll just do this so I'm doing something. Your condition is hard. I can't promise you that she will go down in the plane, but I can say that I'm considering it! Thanks so much!**

**Snowfairy: Welcome to my story! Thank you so much, I'm glad I'm doing well with it. I'd settle for decent even! Thank you so so much and I hope this chapter isn't too late of an update!**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve: The Star Spangled Man with a Plan**

_**"When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world." - George Washington Carver**_

Jade woke up the next morning feeling very…confused. After the night before she was unsure of how she felt about her and Steve's relationship. She enjoyed being at Coney Island with him a lot, but it seemed more like a date then escaping from the terror that was her mother's temper. Did she want it to be a date? It just didn't sound right in her head. _Where were you last night? Oh, just on a date with Steve Rogers. _That truly sounded weird.

But another part of her said it could sound okay; delightful even. But that part was deeply, deeply, _deeply, _tucked away. The other side saying it sounded weird was the more dominant part that fully announced itself to the world. So she ignored all the other feelings and continued on with her daily routine.

Today was Steve's first show. It was an important day for him. Maybe he wouldn't look as foolish as she had with the sparkly bow, short skirt, and leather bullwhip. Remembering her promise, Jade got ready as usual as the show was an afternoon one. It was important for it to be somewhat early for the children that the show was intended for. No one wanted to take their children to a Captain America show at eight o'clock at night.

Captain America, where did they come up with these things? At least it wasn't as bad as America's Sweetheart. Boy that was a stinker. It was a little insulting actually to be called that. Why would she want to be typed as this innocent girl who loved everything in America? She didn't. Don't get her wrong, Jade loved America. It was her native country, her home, where she belonged. But America _was _missing a few things such as a co-op military. Hopefully that would change soon…hopefully.

Jade took a quick shower and refreshed her makeup so she didn't have raccoon eyes from last night's makeup. Thinking it was time to mix things up a bit; Jade pulled her curly hair up into a high ponytail and then braided it. The fact that it was the style Steve said was pretty never crossed her mind…more than one time.

She put on a simple café colored dress with her green and gold scarf she had bought with her mother. Jade grabbed a quick breakfast and headed out to run some errands before finally getting to the theater. She bought one ticket and found a seat in the front row situated between all kinds of children. There were kindergarteners and older kids and older kids holding younger kids. It made Jade smile at their happy expressions. She always wanted kids. Maybe after the war…maybe she could finally give into her mother's wishes and have a family and just be a housewife. The war wasn't over though and they needed her. This was her top priority right now.

Finally music started playing after a few minutes. It was once again an upbeat show tune. There were show girls in short skirts and little hats lined up in a "v." They were dressed similarly to how Jade was before, basically wrapped up in the American flag. There was a drum cue and out ran Steve…in a tight star spangled outfit with a large shield. He had a cowl and gloves and even little wings on the side of his mask. It took every fiber in Jade's being not to laugh out loud right there.

"_Who's strong and brave here to save the American way?"_

Steve looked extremely nervous. For her show, she had memorized all her lines in advance save the Lady Liberty part. When his came up, he obviously looked down at the back of his shield. He probably had the lines taped to it. "Not all of us can storm a beach or drive a tank, but there's still a way all of us can fight." His voice was loud but he didn't seem confident enough.

"_Who vows to fight like a man for what's right night and day?"_

"Series E defense bonds: Each one you buy is a bullet in the barrel of your best guy's gun!"

"_Who will campaign door to door for America? Carry the flag shore to shore for America? From Hoboken to Spokane, the Star Spangled Man with a Plan!" _Oh lord _that _was his name? Now America's Sweetheart didn't sound so bad to her.

"_We can't ignore there's a threat and a war we must win! Who'll hang a noose on the goose stepping goons from Berlin?" _This was bad. This was embarrassingly bad. Whoever came up with the lyrics to his song was not the same person as the one who came up with hers. This was just cheesy and too easy to laugh at.

"_Who will redeem, head the call for America? Who'll rise or fall, give his all for America? Who's here to prove that we can? The Star Spangled Man with a Plan!" _Steve's main speech was basically over. Now he just mainly stood around with this goofy grin. Jade waited for him to make eye contact and when he did, she sent him a playful wink. It took a lot for him not to stick his tongue out right on stage.

The show girls lined up in a straight line and a fake Hitler started making his way behind them towards Steve. It was a similar act to Jade's show.

"We all know this is about trying to win the war and we can't do that without bullets and bandages, tanks and tents. That's where you come in. Every bond you buy protects someone you love. Keep our boys armed and ready and the Germans will think twice about trying to get the drop on us." Steve was acting more confidently now. There were little kids yelling at him to turn around because of the so called Hitler. With a smirk he turned around and threw one of the most fake punches Jade had ever seen so the man pretended to get knocked out. There were shouts and cheers from the crowd and Steve sent her a wink.

It made her stomach do little flips. When had he gotten so cocky? The show continued on with mainly just singing and Steve didn't do much but smile and wave. It ended up with a simple end note and with a salute from Captain America, the red velvet curtains closed. "That was the best show I've ever seen!" One kid yelled from somewhere next to Jade. (Though she found his proclamation very hard to believe.)

"Captain America's so nifty! I wonder what he's like in person!" Jade had a sly smirk on her face and a brilliant idea forming in her head.

"Hey kids, you want to go meet Captain America?" The children's heads popped up to Jade's in excitement.

"Really miss, could we?" Their little excited voices were making Jade laugh. Their smiles were completely infectious.

"Sure can, the Captain just happens to be a good friend of mine." There was a collection of gasps and oohs and ahs. The children asked their guardians for permission and once it was confirmed, Jade sprang up from her seat and motioned for the children to follow. They eagerly obeyed and she took them backstage to be met by security.

"Sorry ma'am we can't let you pass." One of the guards informed her, but Jade only smiled brightly with white teeth.

"Gentlemen I'm here to bring my friends to meet Captain America."

"So is every other mom lady. We can't let you go." Jade really didn't want to do this. It was unfair to everyone else but she made a promise to these kids.

"Would you let little old America's Sweetheart through?" The guards squinted their eyes and then finally recognized her as her alias. It was actually pretty easy if you pictured a red bow and a silver mask.

"Oh yes of course ma'am, please come on through, and bring your friends too. Have a nice day ma'am." And they let her through. Was that really it? All she had to do was say she was Lady Liberty and they let her backstage? The power she held in that sparkly corset was ridiculously enormous. She led them through the archway while looking around for Steve. He already had the cowl off and was talking to the Senator's other assistant.

"Oh Captain!" The blonde looked over to the source of the singsong voice. He was already beaming at her and when he saw the children, Steve still felt comfortable. Kids were a lot simpler to deal with than adults. They were nice and honest. Plus they said the cutest things sometimes. "Captain I've got some friends I'd like you to meet. Everyone, this is good ol' Captain America!"

The children immediately ran over to hug Steve's legs while they giggled in pure excitement. "Hey there guys! Did you enjoy the show?"

"We sure did Captain!" One boy replied. "You're really swell. Can we have your autograph?" They all asked in chorus. There were "pleases" from each child.

"Sure kids. Just give me a second." He stepped away to grab pictures and a pen and then crouched down to start signing autographs for them. Jade stared at the sight with amusement. He was pretty good with kids. They were all laughing and had such looks of joy on their faces. Steve seemed to be enjoying himself too. "And who can I make this one out to?" She was brought back to reality when Steve called her attention. He had a picture ready to sign and he was acting like he was waiting for her name.

She giggled and crossed her arms. "You can make that out to Jade, the prettiest, funniest, most wonderful girl-"

"Yeah I can see the resemblance to your brother right now." He interrupted her and they shared a quick laugh. The children were looking up at them with curious expressions. What was going on?

"Are you two boyfriend and girlfriend?" One boy asked. Jade's eyes widened at the boy's question. There was a lump in her throat preventing her from speaking. What was with people thinking that she had some kind of feelings for Steve? First it was an old lady, then her family, now little kids were questioning their relationship! This was getting ridiculous!

"Of course not silly," A girl with pigtails said next to him. She was clutching onto a teddy bear and had a look of superiority over the boy on her face. "She can't be dating him because it's so obvious that Captain America and Lady Liberty are dating!" Facepalm…literal facepalm, the kids didn't know she was Lady Liberty. They must have not been paying attention to her little exchange with the guards. Or they were too young to really understand what was going on at the time. Bring two American patriotism figures of the opposite sex and children will automatically assume they're together.

Steve was standing there completely dumbstruck. Why did they assume they were dating? Was it something about the matching outfits? That couldn't be it. He didn't know what he felt about this. It didn't seem right with them dating, but would dating Jade be all that bad? He got invisible shivers down his spine when he thought about that. It just wasn't right. They were great friends! She was his best friend next to Bucky. It couldn't be.

"No kids see-"

"That's a great idea!"

Senator Brandt was walking towards them. Jade squeezed her eyes closed in distress. This was not what she needed. He shooed the children away much to their dismay and clapped his hands together. "Picture it you two, Captain America and Lady Liberty. Separately they can do well: movies, comic books, trading cards: the whole she-bang. Put them together and they're America's power couple. Movies together, special appearances in comics books, you can even do shows together every once in awhile! It's like doubling patriotism. People see you two together and see that with this love there's still hope during a dreadful war. The wives and girlfriends want their partners home safely, so they buy bonds. They want to take care of them like they usually do, so they sign up for the Red Cross! These kids were on to something!" It sounded like a dreadful idea truthfully. Why would Jade want to pretend to date Steve?

"Senator is that really a good idea? I mean will people really believe that we're dating?" She asked him, gesturing towards her and Steve.

"Of course they will! You've just got to make sure you play the part. It's about the people and how well they act. What do you guys say?"

Jade was about to protest when Steve decided then would be a good time to speak up. "I don't think it's a bad idea." Jade's jaw dropped as she stared over at Steve with disbelief clearly evident on her face. "What? It's going to help the war effort! Listen Senator, we'd be happy to help out in any way we can." The senator looked more than happy to accept that answer. He thanked them both and promised to get back to them with more details. As soon as he said goodbye and left backstage, Jade whacked Steve's arm. She was a super soldier too so when she hit him, Steve grabbed his arm and yelped in surprise.

"Ow, what was that for?" He asked in a loud whisper.

"Are you serious? This is an absolutely horrible idea! Now we've got to pretend we're together whenever we're in costume!" She loud whispered back to him. Her voice was panicky and cracked every once in awhile.

"It's not gonna be that bad!" He said, a slight Brooklyn accent leaking through. "Ok we hold hands every once in awhile and we sit close together. The worst they're going to make us do is go to charity events together. It's not like they're going to make us kiss every time we're in public and declare our love for each other!" Jade took a deep breath to steady herself and tried to remain calm. It was true that it wasn't as bad as it could be, but Jade still wasn't happy with this.

How could Steve be so calm about this? Usually he was a nervous wreck around women and in these types of situations. How on Earth was he not stuttering and acting like a fool? "How are you calm?" She asked him. "You start talking to Peggy Carter and words are stuttering every second. The prospect of you dating me comes along and you're not only calm but you're confident! How is this even possible?" She was holding back a lot to prevent herself from yelling out loud.

Steve just shrugged and crossed his arms, trying to act nonchalant. "It's not you and me dating, it's Captain America and Lady Liberty. Steve Rogers is a bumbling idiot with the incapability to talk to the female species. Captain America is confident around everyone." He finished with a nod, trying to assure himself that was true.

Jade gave him a cold hard stare. This was not her best friend. This man wasn't shy or anything. This man had too much of an ego. "I like Steve Rogers better," she whispered coldly and walked away without a second glance. Steve had changed when he put on that costume. To anyone else he would have been just a normal guy. But that wasn't how the real Steve was. And Jade didn't enjoy that. She liked when he was shy and how every once in awhile his bright interior would break through to make her laugh or blush. Captain America may have been confident, but he wasn't as sweet as just plain old modest Steve Rogers.

* * *

The senator had followed through with the plan. They kept it secret at first, but then as the shows went on, Captain America and Lady Liberty became more popular. Steve made propaganda movies of him leading a squadron of men into battle. They were often shown before feature pictures. Jade did propaganda ads for the Red Cross and even some other things like victory gardens. They would go in papers, on posters, and in magazines. There were a few comic books before the official announcement of the relationship between the Captain and his Lady. When it happened, there was an explosion of excitement. Then they did movies together. Next came the comic books. The comic books were different because they portrayed Jade as a butt kicking superhero alongside Steve. It wasn't the normal portrayal of a woman, but of course this wasn't normal circumstances.

There were trading cards and lunch boxes and pictures. Kids came up to them all the time for autographs. Several times Jade was approached by men who would give her their number or offer to take her out despite the relationship with Captain America. Jade would politely decline each one. She was sure the same was happening to Steve.

Steve…Steve hadn't changed much. His shyness still peaked through sometimes. It just wasn't always easy to see. It was nice to know the old Steve was still there as well.

Charity events came maybe once a month. It was always some benefit to raise money for the war. Allison stuck around to create outfits for each event for Jade. One month was a big ball. So Allison came up with a beautiful evening gown. She seemed to be enjoying being able to dress up her sister-in-law like a doll.

The shows were never really different. They didn't have to do one together until a few months after the announcement. Demand for a show together was becoming quite high and the senator thought it was time to give the people what they wanted. It would be held when they met up on their tours in Los Angeles. That night, Jade was sucking in her stomach as a wardrobe assistant tied her corset. Allison had opted to stay in New York instead of going on tour with Jade. She mainly stayed home to create new outfits and to keep Jasper in line.

"That looks like it hurts." Jade glanced over at Steve standing next to her now. She hadn't put her hair up yet and a curl fell into her eyes. Steve was already in his costume minus the shield and cowl.

"It hurts like hell, thanks for your concern." She said with much sarcasm. It was apparent that the corset put her in a bad mood. The wardrobe girl finished with a tug and walked away without a word. Jade now had the dress and fishnets on. She still needed to do hair, makeup, shoes, accessories, and get her whip. "I can never understand how guys get ready so quickly."

"I can't understand what takes women so long."

"Touché," she commented while walking over to her vanity. She sat on the velvet stool and began to coat her face in the familiar sparkly makeup. At first she had someone do it for her, but she had enough practice to do it expertly by herself now.

"Why do you need all that makeup?" He asked with an innocent tone.

"It's part of my costume Mr. Suit, Shield, and done. Women have to put in a little more effort." She finished gluing the eyelashes and moved onto the eye makeup.

"You don't need all that makeup," he said in a whisper. Jade was silent as she slid on the slick red lipstick. It was one of those times when the old, shy Steve was back.

"It's not an option for me Steve. The makeup is part of the costume. If I don't put it on I get in trouble." She dabbed glitter across her collarbone and put blush on her cheeks. She felt like it was a bit much but this was standard for her persona.

"Well I think you shouldn't have to wear all of that. It looks like you broke into your mother's makeup and had some fun for the day," he commented. Jade just sighed and put on the boots that lay next to her vanity. She laced them up with shiny red ribbons.

Steve stood by and watched Jade finish getting ready. He even helped her whenever it seemed necessary such as putting her choker on. She was just finishing up attaching her sparkly bow when they heard the clacking of dress shoes approach them. The senator had decided to attend his special show today and he seemed quite pleased with himself.

"Good evening you two," he greeted them with his hands tucked into his overcoat pockets. Senator Brandt was quite pleased with himself for thinking up this idea.

"Good evening Mister Senator," Steve responded for the both of them. Jade smiled over at the older man and began to wind her whip through the little loop on her skirt.

"Listen I have a good idea for the show tonight." He put out into the open, though he sounded skeptical on the legibility of his idea and how good it truly was. "You may not be happy with it, but I think it's what America needs to build up hope once more."

"What is it Senator?" Jade asked while walking over to another table with her silver mask on it.

"I want you two to kiss."

* * *

**A/N: I'm so mean . I'll try really hard to get the next chapter up soon!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Hey guys, I am back. So sorry for the wait. I know it's not acceptable but I'm trying my best. Life is hectic right now. It's hard for me to find time to write and update. So I'm trying the best I can. **

**Not much to say today really. Sorry bout the cliff hanger but here is Chapter 13 I hope you enjoy it.**

**Guest Reviews:**

** : I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to be evil! Thanks for the review**

**Guest (2/24/13): Thanks so much! I'm glad you like the story!**

**Snowfairy: I definitely think that's something Jade would say lol Thanks for the review**

**Levicorpyutani: I know, being sick totally sucks. But I'm better now! So thanks for the get well. I agree that if they kiss it could be a good push. Thanks for the review!**

**Jinglehells: Lol Jade definitely would be happy about this! I'm really sorry for not updating. I'm trying the best I can. Thanks for the review!**

**2bornot2b: Who knows how it's going to turn out? Thanks for the review and thanks for pointing out that error! I plan to go back and edit the whole story once it's complete. Thanks so much!**

**Shediditnotme457: Lol I'm happy I managed to surprise you. Sometime you just have to get straight to the point with things. Thanks!**

**Guest (3/2/13): I'm sorry this took long and sorry about the cliff hanger! Thanks for the review!**

**Resqme: Here it is! Thanks for the review!**

**Guest (3/6/13): Thanks so much!**

**Guest (3/6/13): Don't worry I'm here! Thanks for the review!**

**Ali: Thanks so much :3**

**Guest (3/10/13): Sorry it took forever. I was sick for awhile and it's been hard to find the time to write lately. But here it is. Thanks for the review**

* * *

**Chapter 13: It's Only a Kiss, Right?**

A kiss…they wanted them to _kiss?_ This is exactly what Jade didn't want. Steve himself had said that they wouldn't make them do this. He specifically said that they'd do minor stuff. They wouldn't go so far as to kiss.

But Steve had been wrong. The Senator was waiting there for their reaction. He was acting patiently, yet you could obviously tell he was truly impatient. Senator Brandt was shifting from foot to foot waiting. This was a whole new boundary being crossed. Could he make them do it? Wouldn't that interfere with their rights as American citizens?

"Senator Brandt…is…is this really necessary? I-I mean we're just friends and it's…we're not," Steve was stuttering badly in this situation. It had struck a nerve him in as well. This wasn't right! He couldn't make them do this! He didn't want to kiss Jade! It would be like kissing his sister…if he had a sister.

Senator Brandt sighed thoughtfully like he wasn't sure this was the right thing to do. "People don't exactly believe the whole dating thing. They've seen you hold hands, appear at charity events together, and be in movies or comic books. You've never kissed though and the public finds it hard to believe you're involved. We need to keep this story strong or else the whole thing goes down the toilet." That didn't reassure Jade and she still wasn't comfortable with the Senator's idea. "I understand you're uncomfortable with this, but you have to remember that it's fake. This is just pretend…it's just a show for the crowd."

Jade expected the senator to walk away and let them talk about it so they could come up with their decision. But he didn't leave. In fact he didn't move an inch. It was like he expected them to answer right there and then. Jade didn't want to do this. Steve _definitely _didn't want to do this. How would it affect their relationship?

If the kiss was good, would they want to pursue this relationship…possibly make it real? Or what if the kiss was bad? What if it was absolutely revolting to both of them and their friendship was ruined completely? Neither of them wanted that to happen.

Steve feared the worst. His greatest fear was that the kiss would be perfection to him and would somehow trigger any romantic feelings he had for his good friend. But Jade wouldn't feel anything. It'd be like kissing a stuffed animal as a giggly teenage girl. There'd be no spark, no chills, no warmth…just pressing you lips upon something. And so Steve would have these feelings for her and Jade would still think of him as a best friend or even brother and he'd be in the friend zone for eternity. Steve really didn't want that to happen.

Shaking his head and coming back from reality, Steve found a wide pair of jade green orbs staring up at him in complete indecision. It was too obvious that Jade didn't know what to do. She wanted to do what was right and put on a good show, but kissing Steve was a boundary she wasn't comfortable with crossing.

"It's either this or our story is blown," she stated softly to him. Why was this happening to them? You can't be a genetically altered super soldier without all hell breaking loose, can you? "If this is the only way to help out with the war effort then we might have to do it," Jade finished reluctantly.

"Are you sure? Jade, you don't have to do this. I know that neither of us is comfortable with this, but I'll do it if you are willing to." Steve was always such an honest and caring person. He may not have been comfortable with this, but he would do it just because Jade decided to. That, unfortunately, also put all the pressure of decision making on her. _Will he hate me if I say yes? Can it be that bad kissing Steve? Stop with the stupid questions! _She internally yelled at the annoying little voice inside of her mind.

"If it's the only way then-then we'll just have to muddle through it. It can't be that bad! It's just a little kiss, right?" She gave a pointed glare to the senator who seemed to falter at her gaze.

"Oh, what, yes of course! We want to keep this age appropriate for the youngsters out there!" Jade nodded at him and then shrugged at Steve. He shrugged back at her, a mutual agreement saying 'we may not like it, but we can get through this.' The senator was looking between the two, waiting for an answer.

"If it's just a small kiss…we'll do it." Senator Brandt seemed all too delighted at this answer and happily went along on his merry way to tell the stage director and basically everyone else in the crew what was going on.

The next thing she knew, Steve was engulfing Jade in a giant bear hug that would have crushed anyone not genetically altered. "It's going to be okay, we'll get through this." He breathed into her hair. Jade had yet to respond to the physical contact. Not because she was shocked that Steve was hugging her so protectively, but because she was enjoying it.

Steve was warm, the kind of warm that could cure frostbite on the coldest of winter nights. She nuzzled her nose in the fibers of his costume and wrapped her arms around his torso as best as she could (she may have been altered as well, but he was still bigger than her). The hug was comforting and stopped any trace of tears Jade was going to let go because of the annoying situation they were put in.

"I'm sorry," he whispered in her ear. Even his breath was warm and it sent shivers down her spine.

"For what?" She asked lightly.

"Lying…about the whole kiss thing. I honestly thought we wouldn't have to." Was he really apologizing to her for this? How was he supposed to know the senator would go absolutely insane? She pulled back and held him arms length away by his broad shoulders. (Partly to look him straight in the eye, partly to get away from the warmth before she melted into a pool of sparkles and corset strings).

"Steven Grant Rogers you have nothing to apologize for! You didn't know this would happen and you can't change or see the future, so don't apologize for this!" Steve sighed audibly but just smiled. There was no point in arguing …he'd lose.

"_You're on in one minute!"_

Jade's blood went cold.

* * *

_Breathe…breathe…breathe…_The show had been going on or a little while now. Technically it was just a Captain America show with a special guest appearance by Lady Liberty so Jade only had to appear for part of the show.

But her cue was coming up. Her heart was pounding and her breath was coming out in sharp and shallow. Her thoughts were alternating between 'I can totally do this' and 'there's no possible way I can do this.' But she had already made her decision and she couldn't turn her back on it now.

Everything was fuzzy. She couldn't really hear things properly. It's like someone had let something explode next to her ear and it was all muffled. There was a funny sound, kind of like an applauding audience. It took someone jabbing her arm with a pen for her to realize that it _was _an applauding audience, and they were clapping for her. She had missed her cue and Steve was just standing there awkwardly, waiting for her to get her butt on stage.

Embarrassed, she scurried on stage with as much grace and appeal as she could muster and gave a bright, heart breaking smile while waving foolishly to the crowd.

She gave her usual speech about doing their part and joining the Red Cross, informing the crowd of its importance and such. Eventually her shortened speech ended like normal and she proceeded to just stand next to Steve with that same goofy grin. (Whether it was Jade, Steve or both who had the goofy grin will forever remain a mystery).

"Now remember, doing your part in the war effort will end the war sooner." Steve said with that stoic voice that made hundreds of thousands of girls swoon. "And the sooner we can end the war, the sooner you can get the ones you love back home."

She should have seen it coming. It was the perfect cue for it, but still Jade was shocked when Steve wrapped his arm around her waist, and pulled her to him. Their lips connected and Jade's senses kicked in to overload.

His lips were so soft it was indescribable by mere words. They were lips meant to be kissed. His scent was absolutely intoxicating to her. Just him smelled like coffee with just a hint of cream (the way he liked it) and his lips and breathe were laced thickly with spicy peppermint.

The most surprising part of the whole thing…was that Jade was enjoying it.

* * *

Steve was nervous beyond comprehension. He had never kissed a girl before! (Bucky had once told him when they were teenagers that his mother didn't count. Steve found that easy to believe). What if he missed and did something really embarrassing? Like bump her nose with his! Oh God that would be a disaster. But when the time came, Steve pushed all the negative thoughts from his head and just let instinct take over.

At first he thought he was doing horribly, possibly being revolting, but that soon vanished when he saw her eyes close and her small hand cupped his cheek ever so lightly.

Her lips were warm and soft, tasting like cherries. She smelled like vanilla, but her hair smelled like something equally sweet and kind of fruity. It was all flooding into his nose somehow. And it was, surprisingly, a delightful combination.

But that got him thinking, did he smell delightful? Was this kiss as good to her as it was to him? Steve let the questions run through his head and a maybe a mere three seconds later it was all over. He pulled away just as quickly as he had pulled her to him and gave the crowd a large smile. There were ear piercing screams and cheers. Apparently they had been waiting for that.

The kiss lasted maybe three seconds.

It felt like three minutes.

Both of them wished it could have been a lot longer.

Once the show was officially over, Jade and Steve made their way back stage.

Neither of them said a word to each other.

* * *

Jade changed into her regular clothes as quickly as she could and didn't even bother to remove the repulsing glittery makeup from her face. She simply grabbed her coat and bag and left the stage, heading for the car that would take her to the hotel she was staying in. Thank God both of them had different organizers for these types of things. May had put her in one hotel while the assistant working with Steve had put him in another one down the street. Jade didn't want to be anywhere near him right now.

The driver had barely stopped the car before Jade got out and nearly sprinted to the lobby and up the stairs. She was too jittery to stand still in a creaky elevator.

The room she had been given was decent size. The walls were a tasteful crème color with gold trim. There was a queen size bed with warm crimson red sheets and about a half dozen decorative pillows. Jade hated those pillows.

Jade also hated the fact that there was a time difference between where she was and where Allison was in New York. The blonde was, with no doubt, already in bed and Jade despised the idea of waking her up for something as silly as the girly stuff she wanted to talk about. Jade just needed a (not currently asleep) girl to talk to.

It seemed as though someone was answering her prayers that night, because there was a knock at her hotel door. When Jade opened it, it revealed the one and only Agent Peggy Carter in all of her chestnut hair and full red lipped glory. Breathing a sigh of relief, Jade engulfed Peggy in a tight hug, happy that she was here to save her. Because the amount of deafening thoughts running through her head would have torn her to pieces.

"Peggy!" She nearly screamed into the poor agent's ear. "You're here! You're supposed to be in London!"

Peggy only laughed and returned the hug. "Technically I'm not actually here. Progress wasn't moving too quickly back in London, so I managed to slip away to see you guys! Where's Steve?" She asked with a light tone. She probably hadn't had a break in so long!

"He's in the hotel down the road," Jade answered shy fully while pulling away. She really didn't want to talk about Steve at the moment.

"Uh oh, what's happened?" Jade briefly wondered how Peggy had known something was wrong, but guessing it was girl's intuition she sighed audibly and plopped on the fluffy bed, bouncing up and down a little before finally settling down.

"At the show we had together just now…we…we…"

"You mean the kiss?" Peggy finished for her. It was strange. Usually Steve finished her sentences and it was odd having someone else do it.

"You heard?"

"I saw." Peggy sat down on the bed next to Jade and turned to look at her. "I heard about your show tonight. So I went. That kiss was quite surprising. But you were just acting, so what's wrong?" Peggy may have had female intuition to know something was wrong with Jade, but sensing how the other girl felt was not too stellar.

"It was acting Peggy but…but…I felt…something." It sounded more like an unsure question than a statement, but the chestnut brunette seemed to now understand what was going on.

"You think what you felt wasn't just acting. Do you have feelings for him?" There was a slight pitter patter. There were tears falling silently from the corners of Jade's eyes. Peggy brought her into another hug and let the younger brunette cry into her shoulder.

"I-I don't know! He's my best friend! I don't want to feel anything for him, but that kiss was just…it was like perfection! I wanted it to last forever. I felt safe and happy and it couldn't have-have been any better," she managed to choke out between sobs. Jade wasn't feeling too great right now. Her mind and her heart weren't agreeing on how she was feeling. It was like she was having her own little World War of emotions.

Peggy shushed her and continued to let her cry. Jade was confused and just needed someone to comfort her. "It's going to be okay. It's late, why don't you sleep on it. In the morning you'll feel better. If I'm correct you have some time off before your next show. So you get some sleep and I'll pick you up in the morning. Pack a bag."

Jade felt a lot better since Peggy had helped her through with comforting words. Confused, she wiped her tears away and asked while a bit less shaky, "Where are we going?"

Peggy smiled warmly with her bright red lips. "The Captain has a special show in Italy; we're going to go see him." She saw how pale Jade suddenly became at the thought of going to see Steve. But she only laughed. "Don't worry, by the time you get there everything will be sorted out." Jade nodded and walked Peggy to the door, giving one last smile. "Remember though...listen to your heart, not your head." Peggy said her last farewells for the night and left, letting Jade close the door and slide down it to sit with her knees pulled up to her chest.

Her brain was saying this was ridiculous.

Her heart was saying this was the best thing to ever happen to her.

_Listen to your heart, not your head._

It was official…Jade Callaway had feelings for Steve Rogers.

This was going to make things awkward.

_Well shit…_

Jade pushed those thought away for the moment and changed into pajamas then snuggling into the fluffy pillows and blankets until she fell into a much needed, restful sleep.

* * *

**A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'll work super hard to get the next one up ASAP! You'll finally get to meet Jacob Callaway!**

**Check out my site clarinetgirl628fanfiction . weebly . com it's got pics for actors, outfits, and fanart!**

**Review please! Ciao bellas!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hey guys. I am ok, I am not dead, I'm still working. Unfortunately life's a bitch and has prevented me from getting this out there. There are three main reasons: 1. I am really busy. I'm involved in several school programs that take up a lot of my free time and leaves little time for writing. 2. I have a sucky immune system and every time there's a dramatic change in the climate/weather I get sick. So I'm sick often. and finally 3. This one's a one time thing. I was having some personal issues that distracted me. I just didn't feel like writing because I was dealing with these issues.**

**I apologize for such a long wait. I feel really bad, but life isn't fair and that's one of a writer's greatest barriers. A lot of things are preventing me from writing, but I haven't given up on this story and I will carry on until the end and possibly beyond!**

**I've decided not to reply to reviews because that would take a really long time and prevent this from getting out there tonight. OMG OVER 300 REVIEW! I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH! My last story got 49 reviews. Going from that to over 300 and still counting is absolutely amazing, thanks so much! Thank you for all your reviews, compliments, suggestions, criticism, praise, and concerns. It means so much.**

**If you asked me a question in a review that I didn't answer, I apologize, but leave it in another review or even a private message and I'll definitely answer it to the best of my ability.**

**Now I know I said you guys would meet Jacob this chapter but I just wanted to get an update out there so unfortunately he's not in here, this chapter only goes so far but I have already started to next chapter!**

**Warning: This chapter has more swearing than usual but it's for perfectly good reasons! I know some said that Jade swearing just isn't right but once you see why it'll make sense.**

**Enjoy and review my lovelies :3**

* * *

**Chapter 14: The Star Spangled Man Isn't So Grand**

The rotary dial phone in the room rang loudly. Jade groaned slightly and slowly opened her eyes to observe her surroundings. It was still fairly early in the morning and the curtains were closed without a single crack of light peeking through. The only light in the room was the small nightlight in the bathroom which was as dim as a candle. Jade groaned again when the ringing wouldn't stop. She sat up slightly and rubbed her eyes while picking the phone up and mumbling a bleary "Ullo?"

"Good morning Miss Callaway!" There was an overly perky female voice blasting in her ear. Jade briefly wondered how anyone could be this happy so early in the morning. "This is Ella from hotel management calling for your five o'clock wakeup call!"

Jade's eyebrows furrowed as she swiped her side bangs out of her eyes. "Pardon me? No, I didn't order a wakeup call." She thought back for a minute, trying to remember if she actually did order a wakeup call, but the idea seemed preposterous due to the fact that she would never willingly wakeup at five a.m. on her day off.

"Oh, your wakeup call was scheduled by a Miss Carter who said she would be here by seven and your plane leaves at eight-thirty today!" There was a sudden urge for Jade to hit Peggy with a frying pan. It was bad enough she was taking her to see the _one _person she really didn't want to see, but now she was waking her up three and a half hours before their flight even left.

"Well then thank you Ella. I…_appreciate…_the wakeup call. It's _just _what I needed at five o'clock in the morning." It took a lot of strength for Jade not to lash out on the poor hotel employee and she practically slammed the phone down onto its hook. She slumped back down into her bed, being engulfed by all of the fluffy pillows.

It was now November of 1943. She had not packed her bag the night before. Being overwhelmed with all that was going on, Jade had immediately gone to sleep, trying to avoid thinking all together. Time was going by much too quickly. Now that she was up her brain started turning its gears and it was too easy to start over thinking things. Taking a shower, Jade found it almost natural to slip into her emotional thought process. (Yet it still became quite confusing, so we'll keep this as straight forward as possible.)

Jade had had one boyfriend for a mere six months in junior high school and another one for two years of high school who she had met while working at the library, a job she had had for a while but then had to leave for the time being seeing as she had joined the military. She was normal when it came to dating. There was no incredible shyness, but also no extreme confidence that let her get any guy she wanted. The only thing strange that was in her love life was the fact that Howard Stark was constantly trying to gain her affections when he wasn't busy developing the technology of the future.

Steve had started off as someone she bumped into while making a scene. Then he was a friend to talk to while at camp which quickly turned into one of her best friends. But Steve was an honest, humble, and just downright good guy. Not to mention he was attractive. But that was obvious to any female human being and maybe even to some males. They had a lot in common, not everything but the right balance to keep a decent conversation with some occasional debate to keep things interesting.

Being the only other successful super soldier, Steve understood what was going on with Jade at the moment. They even finished each other's sentences for God's sake! She should have seen these feelings coming from a mile away, but they had taken the back route and snuck up on her. It was the _damn _kiss. Stupid Senator had to go and ruin her thought process.

Seeing Steve was going to be extremely awkward and the thought of it made her want to hide in the hotel closet so Peggy couldn't find her, though she _was _a British government agent and the chances of Jade going unfound were likely to be outrageously low.

Jade turned off the steaming hot water and stepped out, drying herself off with a towel. She shivered at the sudden coldness of the main bedroom and pulled a comb out of her bag so she could (try to) defeat the knots and tangles in her wet hair that appeared jet black when wet. She managed to get it detangled and then went on to put on simple makeup while her hair air dried. Everyone these days was curling it loosely, but Jade was never into that. She liked to do different things to it. Today instead of doing loose curls, she put her now mid-back length hair into tight ringlets.

Her bag still wasn't packed, so Jade quickly put together as much as she could. But the chances of her returning to this hotel were low since after Italy it would be time for another city. So she just packed everything into her bag and pulled out a red floral print dress for the day along with some black flats and a matching, semi-wide brimmed red hat. When everything was packed and ready to go, it was only six thirty in the morning and she still had time before Peggy would come pick her up. Seeing as there wasn't much to do, she sat down at the desk and began writing to Jasper, who she had not contacted in some time.

_Dear Jasper,_

_I'd like to apologize for not writing to you in so long. Life has been busy with this whole Red Cross thing I'm doing. Sometimes I barely get any sleep at night because it takes up so much time. I think I need to talk to you about something though. It's not the normal thing a girl talks to her brother about, but someone needs to hear about this other than my friend, who will never be as close to me as you are._

_Do you remember Steve? We all went to dinner with each other before mom and I…well…you know what happened. Well anyways we were told to act like we were dating for the crowd. I wasn't happy at first, but it didn't require we do much and things weren't all that bad until we were told that we needed to kiss to keep the crowd entertained. I really didn't want to do that and neither did Steve, but we were convinced that it was for the good of the nation and went along with it._

_The kiss itself was…good. I know that's not something you want your big sister telling you about, but it's true. I didn't mind it…at all. There was this spark and it just felt so right. Jasper I think I have feelings for Steve. And I'm afraid he doesn't feel anything for me other than friendship. I really need your advice in this situation. I don't know where I'm going to be next. I'm traveling to Italy for a little while and then continuing my shows. So I'll send you the next mailing address so you can reply as soon as possible. _

_I love you very much, Jade_

Jade put her pen down, folded the letter up and placed it in an envelope, sealing it shut with a lick of the envelope. She put a stamp in the corner, addressed the letter to her brother, and tucked it into her purse for later mailing. Almost the last half hour had passed, so Jade gathered up her stuff and went down to the lobby to check out.

At exactly seven o'clock, Peggy walked into the lobby with confidence radiating off her as usual. She greeted Jade with a kind smile and someone came to take her bags while she was directed to the car waiting for them. Each step she took she was closer to Steve and she was finding it harder to breathe as well.

The plane ride took awhile. It was an overnight trip to Italy and Jade occupied herself by doing crossword puzzles and reading a book Steve had lent her. She was shaking when she first opened it. It was _Steve's _book after all. But after awhile she became enthralled in the literature and no longer focused on the owner of the book, only the crisp pages with thick black ink.

The plane landed on schedule and Peggy took her to their hotel. They had a spacious suite with three rooms, one extra, separated by a living area and a kitchen. There were perks to being a government agent. Or at least that's what Jade assumed. According to the United States government, she was their "property" or at least her altered DNA was and she wasn't an agent. So she didn't receive the perks of always getting a nice hotel suite. Jade got the best that was available. Usually it was something good like a large hotel room, but there were a couple times she ended up in just a plain old room with plain white sheets and those tiny closets right on top of the front entrance.

There was a regiment of soldiers scheduled to come back from a mission the next day along with regiments about to be shipped out. Captain America would be there to greet them and attempt to raise their spirits. Peggy informed the female super soldier that they'd be going over to watch and then pay a visit to the other super soldier…which was the part Jade wasn't really excited about.

When morning finally arrived, Jade took a quick shower, smeared on some light makeup, and quickly dressed in her private's uniform with the combat boots. She figured she'd blend in a little more if she wore a military uniform and not a flow-y dress with three inch heels. She shoved her Lady Liberty uniform into her bag just in case and Peggy motioned that it was time to go. The two left the hotel towards the nearest United States Army base where the men would be brought back for medical treatment and further orders.

The camp was quiet. It was five miles from the actual front. There were so few that made it back from certain regiments. Off to one side tents were set up. Some held higher ranking officers who filled out paper work or signed letters to families saying their son or brother or husband or boyfriend or nephew or (This could go on for awhile) their best friend was dead: killed in action or even MIA. Personally, Jade found KIA much better than MIA. At least when you knew they were dead you knew they were in a better place without war. If they were MIA, who knows what could be happening to them.

In the middle there was a small stage set up with soldiers, hurt and scarred, sitting in front of it. The two brunettes arrived during the usual show. They had both seen it before and it was no big deal if they missed part of the main show. It was mainly just pretty girls in short skirts fawning over the great Captain America. By the end of the show, all the girls left the stage leaving Steve up there alone. Someone brought out a microphone for him. Steve seemed extremely nervous, like more nervous than his first show but not has nervous as when he and Jade had to kiss. God how Jade wished she could just forget about that entire thing.

"How many of you are ready to help sock old Adolf on the jaw?" He asked the crowd of men with a fake smile. Nobody seemed enthused though. When the crowd remained quiet, Steve's smile dropped some. "Okay," he continued with a slight nod. "Um…I need a volunteer!" He was trying very hard to seem excited, but the men out there weren't exactly helping him.

"I already volunteered! How do you think I got here?" A seemingly upset soldier yelled up towards the stage. Steve was losing them and quickly. The audience was laughing and cheering along to the one man's statement.

"Bring back the girls!" Another shouted and the entire group broke out into cheers.

"Jade do you have your costume?" Peggy quickly asked the quiet brunette.

"Uh, yeah it's in my bag." Peggy gestured for her to go put it on. Jade cocked her head to the side, confused on what to do. Peggy waved her hand over at the stage and that little bulb lit up above Jade's head. She scurried off to find somewhere to change.

She could still hear the men outside. "I think they only know the one song, but um…let me…I'll see what I can do." Poor Steve was stuttering like a nervous wreck out there. The outfit went on easily and she already had on red lipstick. Jade just didn't bother with any of the other makeup. Once more she scurried over to Peggy so the Brit could tie her corset. Peggy was one of the people who were never gentle with a corset.

"You do that sweetheart!" Someone else shouted in response to what Steve had said.

"Nice boots Tinkerbelle!"

Peggy finished tying the corset with one last final tug and she pushed Jade off in the direction of the stage. "C'mon guys, we're all on the same team here-"

"Hey captain! Sign this!" A soldier stood up and proceeded to (Jade really didn't want to think about this, she kept her hand in front of her eyes the entire time) pull down his pants and show off his backside. Jade was about ready to vomit in the bushes. They were now throwing their lunches at him while Steve just blocked it with his shield. Jade sped up quickly when she saw the other super soldier leaving. Clambering up the steps of the stage, Steve spotted Jade with his eyebrows furrowed.

"Jade?" She responded by pushing him back onto the stage much to the dismay of the soldiers until they saw Lady Liberty was with him. There were whoops and cat calls all around. Jade was finding it hard not to just flip them off and walk off stage.

They stopped at the front of the stage. Improvisation was new to Jade but she just smiled and put her balled fists on her hips. "Hi, I'm Lady Liberty!" That only resulted in more cat calls. She wanted to say something like 'And I'd appreciate if you'd stop doing that' but she went for the friendlier approach and just smiled. "The Captain and I would like to thank you for your service. I can't think of a way to show how much America appreciates your service-"

"I can think of a few ways doll face!" Jade gritted her teeth together. Steve must have understood the meaning behind the rude man's comment because he took a protective step forward but stopped himself. Jade would be furious with him if he tried anything.

"I'm not that kind of girl soldier." She replied coolly. There were a few snickers from the other men.

"Well we can have a little fun and _then _see what kind of a girl you are." Jade felt her temper rising. You could practically see the puffs of steam coming out of her ears.

"Okay listen here dickhead!" She was silenced when she felt an arm snake around her waist to stop her from moving and a large hand clamp over her mouth to muffle anything that came out. The next thing she knew she was being dragged off stage by Steve while the showgirls traveled back onstage, sending disgusted looks her way.

"Now that wasn't very lady-like was it?" Steve asked her rhetorically. His tone was basically dripping annoyance. He dragged her behind the stage and let her go. The senator's assistant that helped out Steve was trying to reassure him that they'll warm up to him. Steve just ignored him and stalked off while Jade went in search of Peggy. The other brunette was nowhere to be found _and _she still had Jade's clothes. So she was stuck there in a sparkly corset, mask, and fishnet tights.

It seemed like the day could not get any worse. Though that seemed to be a jinx. It then began to pour. The rain was cold and felt like thousands of little needles poking into her skin. Everyone had dispersed to go find shelter, but Jade sat there in the rain. There were a couple tanks in the abandoned field so she climbed up on one and just watched the empty stage. By the time she heard footsteps approaching her, Jade was soaked down to the bone.

"What are you doing here Jade?" Steve had on a tan rain coat and was holding an umbrella above his head.

"I'm off for awhile, so I came to visit you," she replied shakily. Steve was just standing there in front of her, but it was obvious they were currently uncomfortable around each other. Steve looked down at the mud and scraped it with his foot. His bright red boots were turning into a muddy brown color.

"No Jade, I mean what are you doing out here? It's raining and it's freezing and you're just sitting there in a corsage-"

"Corset," Jade corrected him.

"What?"

"A corsage is a little flower decoration you pin on a dress or put around your wrist. I'm wearing a corset." Steve rolled his eyes some and looked up at her.

"That's not the point. The point is that you're going to get sick."

"I'm fine."

"No you're not." Steve jumped up onto the tank and opened up the hatch, his torso and head disappeared into it for a second before coming back out to reveal a standard military jacket. He handed it to her and she slipped it on quietly. Soon she was much warmer than before and Steve had even shared his umbrella, so the only things that were getting wet were the tip of her heeled boots and the occasional drip off the umbrella onto her arm. But that had left them awkwardly close to each other and every once in awhile Jade would subtly move over just a bit. "How have you…uh…been lately? I mean we just saw each other a few days ago. I know that. Of course I would know that, I was there but I wanted to know how you're feeling. I mean you've been off so not much could have happened well unless you went out and did something because that's completely reasonable right? I'm sure you-"

"Shut up before you completely humiliate yourself Brooklyn." He snapped his mouth shut at the sudden interruption and just nodded.

"So what do you want to talk about?" He asked her awkwardly. That was the thing though; Jade didn't want to talk at all.

"Maybe it's better if we just don't talk right now. It's hard to keep a conversation with you stuttering so much." He gawked at this accusation, but only laughed when he noticed her slight smirk. They didn't talk anymore and just sat in the rain until it began to pour down harder. Deciding it was time to find some better shelter, Steve jumped off the tank and helped Jade down as well. The two walked away to the empty stage and found cover underneath the awning in the back. Jade plopped down, wincing at how the wood hurt her bottom and began to tap on the wood with all ten fingers, playing on an invisible piano. Steve also sat, but a bit farther away and brought out his leather bound sketch book and started drawing in it, his concentration focused completely on the strokes of the lead against the paper.

Jade had silenced Steve not only because he was rambling, but because it was awkward talking to him. If they didn't talk, it was easier to imagine their kiss never happened. If they did talk it would get brought up eventually and Jade wasn't ready to face that. She'd be forced to reveal her feelings and then she'd have to face rejection. She wasn't ready for that. So she worked on keeping them in a comfortable silence. That way they were left to whatever thoughts were swimming in their own heads. She just hoped they could work this all out soon.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Hey guys! Yep I'm back in only a week! I think I'm getting better at this whole updating thing. HOLY CRAP GUYS 335 REVIEWS, 248 FOLLOWS, 201 FAVORITES AND A TOTAL OF 26,109 VIEWS! I FREAKIN LOVE YOU GUYS! Seriously...I've had two stories and going from 49 reviews for fourteen chapters on my last story to 335 on this one is absolutely amazing. Thank you all so so much.**

**Hey guys...did you notice the 9th? Huh? Whelp, it was Jade's birthday! . Technically she's only a couple years old since I thought her up last year but we're going by character biography so my little Jadelynn is 93 years old! It's okay though. She ages gracefully. Thank you Guest reviewer for totally pointing that out for me XD**

**So recently I've been finding it really really difficult to reply to all the reviews I get. Plus sometimes it's hard to respond to some of the ones I get. Don't get me wrong, you're guys' reviews make my life brighter and happier. Don't ever stop reviewing...please. But it's getting harder and repetitive so here's my solution. Not sure if I'm going to go with it but we'll see how it goes.**

**Thank you to everyone that reviewed. I appreciate the praise, concerns, questions, and comments. Reviews are my caffeine that keep me going all day since I despise coffee...**

**Questions to be answered:**

**Was dickhead a curse in the 1940s?**

**XD Lol I love that. Yeah, people assume that since it was so long ago they were really pure and stuff but that's far from true. Profanity was just as popular as it was now, just not for women. Women were expected to be very respectable during those times but they slipped every once in a while. So yes, dickhead was a curse XD lol **

**Are Steve and Jade ever going to go into battle?**

**Yes! America's Liberty follows the events of the movie and so eventually Jade and Steve will both go into battle with their little missions and all. I just don't want to go directly into it. Because then I'd have like a ten chapter story and I want this to on for a while. In fact we're probably at about the halfway point. But yes they'll go into battle.**

**Will the rescue be in this chapter?**

**Well go read and find out! :D**

**Will Jade rescue the soldiers while wearing her costume?**

**Technically yes...technically no...**

**Thanks for all the reviews guys. Here's chapter 15, I hope you guys enjoy, review please!**

* * *

**Chapter 15: The 107****th**

The rain was pouring down hard, obnoxiously hard. Jade had never liked the rain. It was cold against her skin and would make her all wet. She hated being wet unless it was because she had intentionally wanted to be. For instance going for a swim was fine. Getting thrown into a pool was not fine.

The rain pouring down at the makeshift United States Army base in Italy was coming down hard enough and was cold enough that it felt like thousands of little needles puncturing her skin. She was glad for the jacket Steve had gotten her from the tank and the shelter built on the back of the stage. At least she could dry off. It would take a long time to dry off but she would eventually.

Steve had not said a word to her. He was avoiding her and any awkward conversation as much as possible. The only time he talked to her while they sat under that awning was when Jade would give out a little squeak of a sneeze and he'd absent mindedly reply, "Bless you." Jade had the feeling he was only saying it because it was the polite thing to do. His parents had raised him like that.

For awhile the only sounds were the scratching of pencil against paper from Steve and pattering of raindrops against the roof. Just as Jade was getting ready to do something about the annoying silence, there were light footsteps approaching where the two sat. Jade immediately glared at the approaching woman with such fury that if looks could kill, Peggy Carter would have kicked the bucket. She had completely left her there in her ridiculous costume _with _Steve who she was heavily avoiding. Peggy had caught her smile and had only smiled sheepishly as if to send her apologies. She would not get off that easily.

Steve raised a questionable eyebrow and look around to see who had joined them. His eyebrows lifted in surprise when he saw the British agent.

"Hello Steve…Jade." She smiled kindly.

"Hi…What are you doing here?" He asked her. He sounded mainly shocked, but Jade could hear the thin coat of happiness that laced it. She would never admit it, but at the moment she was quite jealous of Peggy. Why hadn't Steve been happy to see _her?_ Oh goodness gracious…him not having any romantic feelings for her would have been bad, but if he had feelings for _Peggy _it would be total heartbreak for the young woman. She wanted to just cry right there, but she bottled it up and decided not to just assume the worst even though it was bothering her to no end.

"Officially I'm not here at all." She replied with a hint of mystery. Jade guessed it came with being a British agent. She placed her coat next to her and sat on one of the crates. "That was quite a performance," she commented, trying to hold back as much negativity as possible.

"Yeah, uh…I had to improvise a little bit. Crowds I'm used to are usually more, uh…loud" He furrowed his eyebrows, deciding that was the best way to describe it.

"But I understand you Americans knew hope?"

"Bond sales take a ten percent bump in every state I visit and Red Cross membership takes an eight percent bump wherever Jade goes." He informed with a bitter tone. Jade's head popped up at the sound of her name, but she just shrugged and started picking at her French manicure. If Allison saw her doing it, she'd get the scolding of a lifetime.

"Is that Senator Brandt I hear?" Peggy was joking as well but you could still hear the bitterness.

"At least he's got us doing this. Phillips would have had us stuck in a lab." He said and scratched his nose. He seemed disappointed in what he had just said.

"And those are your only two options? A lab rat or a dancing monkey," she said while peering over his shoulder at the sketch book. "You were meant for more than this you know, both of you."

Jade took the opportunity to try and interfere. "Yeah well this dancing monkey wouldn't mind if you gave back her clothes. I can't breathe in this stupid corset." Peggy only rolled her eyes and handed over the bag that contained Jade's military uniform. She immediately stripped of the high heeled boots and the giant bow in her hair only to be replaced with a normal ponytail. The mask came off next and her face was revealed again. She hadn't taken it off beforehand.

Steve opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but then he stopped himself. "What?" Peggy asked while Jade dug into the bag for her scuffed combat boots that actually fit her now.

"You know for the longest time I dreamed about coming over seas and being on the front lines, serving my country. Jade…just wanted to be something other than a housewife," he started while looked around at nothing in particular. Jade smiled when he mentioned her. He seemed compassionate about what she had wanted. "I finally got everything I wanted…and I'm wearing tights."

There was a loud honking coming from a transport vehicle. The trio look over to see what it was before Jade finally found her boots and stared putting them on. She'd change later when she could find a private place.

It was a medical vehicle with a large red cross on the back inside a white circle. Soldiers hurried to open it and take out the men lying on stretchers. Whether or not they were dead or alive was a mystery to Jade. "They look like they've been through hell," Steve said turning back around.

"These men more than most," Peggy informed him. With a confused look from the blonde, she elaborated more. "Schmidt sent out a force to Azzano. Two hundred men went up against him, and less than fifty returned. Your audience contained what was left of the 107th. The rest were killed or captured."

She had heard of the squadron before. The 107th…it seemed familiar. Bucky had been in that squadron she remembered that. But…there was someone else too. And then she remembered: Her brother's smiling face when he got a telegram with his orders. His family had asked him what squadron. He had happily replied…the 107th. Jade broke down. Jacob Callaway was in the 107th.

"The 107th?" Both Steve and Jade shouted to the British woman with urgency. They looked at each other; awkwardness was put aside to be replaced with sheer fear.

"What?" She asked confused. Both Steve and Jade rushed up, pulling their coats over their heads and yelled for Peggy to follow them. Jade had never been so scared before. The possibility that her brother was gone was too much for her to handle so she tried to block out the possibility.

They ran directly for a tent where Colonel Phillips sat at a makeshift desk with papers sitting in front of him, a pen in his hand ready for his signature. "Colonel Phillips," the older man looked up to see the trio rushing towards him.

"Well if it isn't the Star-Spangled Man with a Plan and his little girlfriend." Jade ground her teeth while Steve was stuttering and blushing. Colonel Phillips just shut him up again. "What is your plan today?" He asked obviously uninterested.

"I need the casualty list from Azzano." Steve stated boldly. But Jade knew the chance of them getting it was low. That was a secret military document and they were no longer associated with the United States military. They were dancing monkeys for the senator.

"You don't get to give me orders son," he replied coolly and yet somewhat annoyed.

"Sir I just need one name: Sergeant James Barnes from the 107th."

He pointed over to Peggy, "You and I are gonna have a conversation later that you won't enjoy." Jade would have felt sorry for the agent if she wasn't too busy practically screaming over her possibly dead brother.

"Please tell me if he's alive, sir. B-A-R…"

"I can spell." The older soldier answered somewhat rudely, but looked down at his papers anyways. He got up from his seat and turned his back to them. "I have signed more of these condolence letters today than I would care to count." He said quite depressingly. "But…the name does sound familiar. I'm sorry," he offered with some empathy as he looked back at them. The hurt in Steve's eyes was obvious and he tried to look away.

Jade's eyes were stinging from unshed tears as she walked up to the Colonel hesitantly. "Sir…Private Jacob Callaway of the 107th…please," she whispered the last part, begging for good news. He looked down; Colonel Phillips was going to say no at first. He had already given out one name and didn't want to risk another. But they had the same last name and his empathetic side (everyone had one, though some were just deep down) made the decision for him.

"I'm not sure," he picked up a pile of papers that were most likely condolence letters from a table and began rifling through them. The pages went by quickly, but towards the end of the middle his fingers suddenly stopped their rapid pace. He closed his eyes for a second and looked at her with complete sorrow across his aged features. "I'm sorry Miss Callaway."

The tears finally burst free and she let out a small wail. Quickly, Peggy brought the younger girl into her arms and let her cry into her shoulder. Jade had felt this pain before. When he father died she knew exactly what had been wrong with him and his death had ripped a hole in her heart. Now the hole was expanding.

Peggy was offering her soft murmurings of calming words. "It's fine, he might be just captured, and it'll be okay, I swear, it'll be okay." Jade mainly ignored the other woman and just let the pain take over.

"What about the others? Are you planning a rescue mission?" Steve asked suddenly, trying to get more information.

"Yeah, it's called winning the war," was the colonel's reply. Jade wasn't happy with that and obviously neither was Steve.

"But if you know where they are why not at least-"

"They're thirty miles behind the lines through some of the most heavily fortified territory in Europe. We'd lose more men than we'd save," he said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "But I don't expect you to understand that because you're a chorus girl, both of you." This brought out another wail from Jade. She was in too much pain to be angry but that didn't stop her from hating being called a chorus girl.

"I think I understand just fine. And I think Jade does too."

"Well then understand it somewhere else. If I read the posters correctly, you've got someplace to be in thirty minutes." He said while walking away.

Meanwhile Steve was gazing heavily at something on a board in the tent. "Yes sir…I do." And he walked away as well. Confused, Peggy looked at what Steve saw. It was a map stating exactly where the Hydra base was…this wasn't good. "If you have something to say right now's a perfect time to keep it to yourself." Peggy looked at the colonel then to Jade.

"C'mon dear, we're going to get your brother back." Jade's wet green eyes peered over to the other brunette with hope filling them. They walked from the tent and with anger, Jade looked to the colonel with his back to her and simply held up her middle finger to him. She had been waiting to do that. The British agent led the still somewhat crying super soldier through the camp to an enclosed tent where costumes were hanging for the showgirls and Steve was putting cargo pants over his costume. "What do you plan to do, walk to Austria?" She asked him while leading Jade off to the side and the getting rid of her damp coat.

"If that's what it takes." He answered her.

"I'm going with you!" Jade piped in with newfound courage. If her brother was just there, captured, there was nothing on this planet that would stop her from going to get him back.

"No you're not!" Steve yelled back to her. This was dangerous and he wasn't taking a chance of losing her. She was too important to him, even if she didn't realize it.

"You can't stop me! Face it, we're a team Steve, you need me." He narrowed his eyes at her and then nodded curtly. Jade was a super soldier too and she was right, they worked well together. He would just have to keep a close eye on her.

"Take you whip," he commanded. She only nodded, satisfied that he no longer protested to her joining him.

"You heard the Colonel. Your friend is most likely dead." Peggy was trying to convince him not to throw himself (and naturally Jade) into danger. It was a low blow but she'd try anything to stop him.

"You don't know that and Jade's brother could be alive too." He was now slipping on a leather jacket. Jade looked at her clothes. She had the normal costume, but with combat boots, no mask, just a ponytail, and the military jacket. Her other clothes had been left on the stage. The leather bullwhip was already looped into her belt.

"Even so, he's devising a strategy. If he detects…"

"By the time he's done that, it could be too late!" He yelled at her and grabbed his backpack and shield.

"Steve!" Peggy yelled but he was walking out of the tent to an uncovered Jeep. Jade soon ran after him, not wanting him to sneakily leave without her. "Jade!" Steve was dumping his possessions into the back of the truck and he looked at Peggy when she approached.

"You told me you thought I was meant for more than this. Did you mean that?" He asked her sincerely.

"Every word," she replied confidently. There was a moment where they just breathed and then Steve gained up his courage again and walked around to the driver's side of the vehicle and Jade strode to the passenger side.

"Then you've got to,"

"Let us go," Jade finished for him. They were working as a team once more and finishing each other's sentences and talking together was slipping into their natural speech pattern with ease. Steve started up the car and Peggy ran up to the side to stop him from leaving.

"I can do more than that."

* * *

Peggy had immediately left to go do whatever British agents do. Jade assumed she was calling people, asking for favors and such since she said it might take her awhile. They were told to just wait. Steve's show was in a half hour and he was _not _going to be attending so Peggy informed him that she'd do her best to work quickly so he didn't have to step foot on stage.

She had been gone for maybe five minutes. Both super soldiers were sitting in a tent, smaller than the costume one but still a decent size. Once again they were awkwardly quiet. It was distracting to Jade. This was all because they were told to kiss on stage. Maybe Steve had hated it and just didn't want to hurt her feelings since he was a gentleman and all.

Gaining up some amount of courage, Jade took a sharp intake of breath and hesitate before nearly choking out, "Are we ever going to talk like normal or are we just going to pretend one another doesn't exist?"

Steve's head had slowly turned over to her. He didn't want to have this conversation. It was inevitable, but he had still wished it would never come. He didn't know what to say to her, what was she supposed to say? That he _had _enjoyed the kiss and now was feeling these confusing emotions but was avoiding her because he didn't want to ruin the friendship they had. "I-I don't k-know what you're…you're talking about," he stuttered out unsteadily. Jade rolled her eyes at it and he tried not to take offence to the gesture.

"Yeah you do Steve…I know it's hard to talk about, but we both knew this conversation was going to happen. I don't know about you but I'm awfully confused and I just want to sort things out." He faltered when she said she was confused. Was it because she now had different feelings toward the man? Was it because she didn't know how he felt? He didn't know, but Jade did. She was confused because she was experiencing these new feelings of more than best friends toward Steve and she didn't know how to react to them.

"I don't know what to say Jade. I mean I know we can't just pretend the k…k-k…k…_kiss_," he was struggling greatly with finally saying the 'k' word aloud for the first time but with some patience it squeaked through weakly. "Never happened because it did…it did happen and now we're barely talking to each other and that's not right, we're great friends and this whole thing could ruin it all and that's what's making me mad. I'm not sure how I feel anymore. I mean I don't hate you or anything. I could never hate you! I couldn't even dislike you and I'm going to stop now before I forget to breathe." He finally stopped rambling and Jade let out a soft laugh. Steve had missed that laugh.

"You're right, it did happen," she said seriously once more while shifting uncomfortably on the wooden stool she had chosen to sit on. "So we've got to face to music and just deal with it. That way we can focus on saving the captured troops…Steve?"

"Hmm?" He hummed in response.

"Do you think my brother's…d-dead?" Her voice came out a soft whisper and you could almost see her heart slowly crumbling. Steve wanted to stop that from happening, but he didn't know how.

"Of course not," he said half lying and half speaking the truth. There was a fifty-fifty chance if he was alive or not and Steve just didn't know. "He's alive, probably sitting with Bucky right now as we speak. They're conspiring plots to escape the hell they're in, but what they don't know is that we're gonna save them." Hesitantly, Jade got up and tip toed to where Steve was sitting and awkwardly she engulfed him in a hug.

"Thanks Brooklyn," she muttered into his shoulder. The man she had confusing feelings for never replied.

Not but ten minutes later Peggy had returned back with a confident look upon her face. "I'm happy to announce that I've managed to get us a lift via aircraft." Jade could almost jump for joy at that point. They were going to get there and they were going to get there quickly. That's all she could ask for at this point.

"Who's our pilot," Steve questioned while getting up and gathering his things.

"…That would be Howard Stark." The smile slipped from Jade's face and she quite literally cried out in frustration. No matter what she did, the inventor would always be right behind her!

"Can't a girl catch a break?" Peggy raised an eyebrow and Steve felt very uncomfortable at that point. He didn't exactly like the fact that this other man was trying to always gain the affections of Jade when he was slowly developing feelings toward her himself.

"Gather your things, he'll be here soon. He was in Europe, traveling more towards our area while we were away from England. It shouldn't take him long to get there." So the duo grabbed their things and followed Peggy out of the tent and towards the airfield. While passing the stage area, Steve stopped the group for a minute and ran over to some shelves. He brought out two of the showgirls' helmets. One had a large capital "A" on it while the other had a white star of around the same size. He handed the starred one to Jade and she put it on gratefully.

When they got there, a single silver plane bearing the _Stark Industries _logo was waiting with the confident, as always, Howard Stark waiting for them, leaning against the machine. With simple greetings, they all clambered onto the plane and immediately Peggy brought out a map of Germany.

"The Hydra camp is in Krausberg," she stated firmly while pointing at the yellowing map in her lap. Steve was fixing his brown leather jacket that he had put over his costume along with the brown cargo pants. Jade hadn't had the time to change her clothes; Steve had gotten a head start on her and once the she left her clothes on stage she completely forgot about them. So she was in her dress with a military jacket and combat boots along with her bullwhip, though she doubted she would use it. "…tucked between these two mountain ranges. It's a factory of some kind."

"We should be able to drop you right on the doorstep." Howard informed them from the pilot's seat. He had made no protests against Jade going into this. She would just yell at him to shut up.

"Just get us as close as you can," the two soldiers replied in unison. Peggy sighed and muttered under her breath, 'I hate it when they do that.' "You know you two are gonna be in a lot of trouble when you land," he said slightly concerned.

"And you won't?" Peggy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Where I'm going, if anybody yells at me, I can just shoot them. And if one person even looks at Jade wrong their dead." Jade rolled her eyes at Steve's protective nature.

"Lighten up Steve, I'm a big girl, I can kill my own Nazis."

"They will undoubtedly shoot back." Peggy said obviously while ignoring what the other brunette girl had said.

"Well let's hope it's good for something," Steve tapped on his shield to prove his point with a hopeful look in his eyes. The silence was short lived when Howard decided to change the topic to something Jade didn't want to discuss.

"Hey Jade, maybe when you get back I can take you out to dinner. Never got a chance to take to out to that Italian place back in Brooklyn. We can get real Italian instead." Jade inwardly groaned at the genius' offer, but simply smiled forcefully. She had missed the worried glance Steve had sent her way. Agent Carter had not.

"Maybe…that's not such a good idea Howard." She said trying to break the news of their non-growing relationship to him.

"Well sure it is!" He clearly wasn't catching onto her tone of voice and went on. "You'll need a break and we haven't spent much time together lately. Maybe we can go out for fondue as well." Steve raised an eyebrow, confused. _Fondue? What was fondue? It sounds…well…ew. _Steve had never even heard of fondue and quickly assumed it was a…_unfamiliar _topic.

Fed up with Howard's attempts to make her swoon, Jade impulsively called his name to gain his attention and then placed her hand on the back of Steve's neck, pulling him in for a quick kiss that sent electric shocks up her spine. She pulled away almost as quickly as she had pulled him in and Steve noticeably frowned, though she was oblivious to this. She had kissed him again! And he felt those little shivers like before! What was she doing? This could definitely make things worse.

Howard's eyes widened slightly and he took a long, deep breath. With his cocky smirk back on in a matter of seconds, Jade worried that he would continue to try. Instead he called out, "Agent Carter?" The chestnut brunette turned her shocked self over to the pilot of the plane and waited for him to continue. "If we're not in too much of a hurry, I thought we could stop off in Lucerne for a late-night fondue."

_Unbelievable, _Jade thought, _he's already moved onto another woman!_ Peggy ignored him and seeing the annoyed face of Steve said, "Stark is the best civilian pilot I've ever seen. He's mad enough to brave this airspace. We're lucky to have him." She was trying to assure them that Stark was needed. Jade still thought he was a man-whore.

"So…are you two…Do you…" Steve was pointing between the two of them and Peggy gestured for him to get on with it. "…fondue?" Jade mentally face palmed. He didn't know what fondue was…and he thought it had something to do with sex. The boy could be so naïve sometimes.

Ignoring his stupidity completely, Peggy held out a little box for him. "This is your transponder. Activate it when both of you are ready and the signal will lead us straight to you."

"Are you sure this thing works?" He called to Howard.

"It's been tested more than you, pal." Howard assured with a ridiculous pun that made Jade want to gag.

Suddenly there were gunshots racketing in the sky. There were sparks outside and the plane rocked back and forth. They were being fired at. Steve jumped up from his seat and Jade quickly followed him, not really thinking about what she was doing.

"Get back here!" Peggy yelled. "We're taking you all the way in!" Steve opened up the back hatch for them and the loud noises of war in the air plunged into the plane. Steve crouched down with a parachute as Jade quickly strapped hers on.

"As soon as I'm clear, you turn this thing around and get the hell out of here!"

"You can't give me orders!" Peggy yelled at him defiantly.

"The hell I can't! I'm a Captain." That wasn't actually true but Steve would use it to his full advantage. He smirked at the Brit, pulled down his goggles and jumped down, much to Peggy's astonishment. She watched his parachute open up and sighed in relief. Jade wasn't waiting patiently behind her so she could jump as well.

Annoyed, Peggy screamed, "Well you might as well just go!" Jade smirked and winked to her friend and jumped out as well, not bothering to crouch like Steve had. She didn't quite like the idea of falling down as bullets rained upon her, but once she released the parachute, it was kind of nice to just float.

She landed, somewhat, gracefully in a foggy forest. It was dark outside and somewhat difficult to see, but Steve was waiting for her and found her eventually so the two began running through the dense forest, trying to find the factory. They came up to a muddy dirt road and in front of them, a large facility with a high fence with barbed wire at the top and watch lights circling around it stood high and mighty. The gate was guarded by at least two men in strange apparel. It was an all black military uniform and then a strange helmet that reminded Jade of the sci-fi comics Jasper used to read.

The loud humming of a convoy was coming towards the facility and Steve motioned for Jade to follow. The last truck of the convoy had only a black curtain covering it and would be easy to jump in to. With a running start, Steve easily jumped inside and Jade soon followed, with a little help from Steve. He had grabbed her hand and pulled her in so they rolled inside, only to be faced with two Hydra men.

"Fellas," Steve greeted unceremoniously. The two hesitated for a second before going to attack the two super soldiers. Instinctively, Jade went for the one on the right and Steve went for the left one. Steve's method was to knock him around, occasionally hitting the canvas cover of the truck and then knock him out of the truck to the passing road.

Jade went for the less direct approach and she maneuvered around behind the Hydra guard. She pulled her whip from her belt loop and wrapped it around his neck, cutting off his air supply till he passed out. She pushed his body out of the back and smiled in triumph. Steve was staring at her with a raised eyebrow and then looked down to the whip, still in her hand unraveled.

"What?" She asked. "It's here with me, might as well use it." She panted, searching for her breath to come back once more. With her super soldier recovery time and such, she soon was breathing normal as well. Waiting to be brought inside, both sat down on the benches across from each other. It didn't take long to enter the facility grounds and the truck suddenly stopped. It began to back up and Steve shot up to crouch down with his shield in front of him. He gestured for Jade to get behind him and she followed orders, agreeing with the protection.

The curtain was opened up and a Hydra guard was suddenly hit by a red, white, and blue shield. He was knocked out and knocked back at the same time. The two jumped out of the truck and stealthily made their way to the other side of the building that was mainly occupied by tanks, lights, and some soldiers. They slithered between trucks and sprinted across fields, going unnoticed somehow. Steve climbed on a tank, helped Jade up, climbed onto one of the smaller buildings surrounding the actual factory, and helped Jade up once more. Without another thought or word between the two, they both went running across building rooftops and such until they eventually got to the factory.

There was a small door, barely noticeable, that they slid in and walked through a corridor to another, larger door with a guard in front of it. Steve knocked on the steel. It made a disturbing hollow sound. The guard opened it up and peeking his head inside. Jade slammed the door on his head and Steve sent a well aimed punch to his face. The guard was unconscious and they pulled his body into the abandoned corridor.

Steve and Jade slipped inside the strange room and his behind a concrete half-wall. There were Hydra people everywhere and Jade was suddenly worried they'd get caught. Steve seemed pretty confident though. He was timing their walking perfectly, making sure they only passed through when no one was looking their way. They were passing by what appeared to be missiles (Jade had never seen one) and Steve pulled out a pistol with him. Jade gulped, she didn't have a weapon other than a leather bullwhip.

It must have been an audible swallow. Steve looked and saw the weaponless dame. He rolled his eyes and pulled out a revolver for her to have. She questioned why he got a pistol and she got a standard revolver but he told her they were both good weapons and for her to shush. Captain America had taken over and Steve Rogers was once more pushed back.

There was an open area with a large wheel that resembled a gear. Inside of it were strange blue, glowing cartridges that seemed incredibly dangerous. Steve studied them for a bit before taking one and shoving it into his pocket.

It was a rather large facility and while trying to find the prisoners, the duo had gotten lost at least twice. Jokingly, Jade recommended they stopped for directions. Steve sent her a very _not _amused look. Eventually they came to a barren room. The only things in it were guard rails, two Hydra soldiers, and strange holes in the floor with bars in them. A closer look confirmed the prisoners were being held in sick, demented cages that resembled a bird cage. Steve took down the left side guard with a single shot and Jade took down the right one with two shots.

"Aim's a little rusty there Queens," Steve commented and she narrowed her eyes at him in response. One of the guards had landed on the top bars and attracted the attention of them men inside. Steve leaped over to grab the guard's keys while Jade kept watch, constantly turning around to observe all around her.

"Who are you supposed to be?" A dark skinned man asked. He had on an army uniform with a garrison cap.

"I'm…Captain America."

"Lady Liberty," Jade piped in with a small wave and smile. One of the men waved back to her, dumbfounded.

"I beg your pardon?" A man with a red beret seemed pretty much confused but Steve didn't notice.

"We're here to get you guys out," Jade reassured them. When Steve grabbed the keys, Jade ran over and grabbed the other guard's keys and they ran down the stairs to the room holding all the cages. One by one they began unlocking the cages so the men got out easily. They came to the end. The men were all around, beginning to make their way towards the exit. A man in a bowler hat with a thick moustache noticed another man who appeared to be of Japanese descent.

Not many people trusted the Japanese nowadays due to their attack on Pearl Harbor, including Jade. Maybe it wasn't fair to the innocent Japs, but the American people had been told to distrust them, so they did. "What, are we taking everybody?"

Knowing what the taller man was talking about, the Japanese man pulled out his dog tags and held them up by his thumb to be seen. "I'm from Fresno, Ace."

Steve ignored them; his goal was not to settle differences between the Americans and the Japanese. He just needed to find Bucky. Jade, meanwhile, was searching frantically for a tall, dark brown haired man with slight stubble, and dark brown eyes. She pushed her way through the crowds, panicking while trying to find her brother. A soldier stopped her by the soldiers and looked at her with concern. "Are you looking for someone ma'am?"

She nodded frantically while still looking around. "P-private Jacob Callaway of the 107th." The man smiled in a friendly way and pointed over to three men. Two were on each side of another who seemed to be injured, so the outside two were helping the man walk. His right pant leg was coated with blood and he was avoiding walking on that leg. It was indeed Jacob and Jade nearly tripped while running and then embraced him tightly.

The man was startled at first, but he knew his sister from anywhere and cried out in relief. "Jade…my god you're actually here! What-what are you doing here? What's with the sparkly corset?" She pulled back, tears stinging her eyes. He was there…he was alive.

"That doesn't matter. We're going to get to out of here and then you can go home because you're injured." Realizing what she had said, Jade's eyes widened and she panicked again. "Oh my God you're injured! What happened?"

He smiled lovingly. "That doesn't matter. We're getting out of here," he said mimicking her. She smiled widely and looked to the other two. They informed her they could handle helping out her brother. She kissed his cheek and waved, walking back to the front of the group where Steve was.

Steve saw her and grabbed her hand, dragging her along. "Bucky's probably in the isolation ward. Did you find your brother?"

Jade nodded. "Yeah, he's hurt but he'll be okay. We need to find Bucky." He nodded in return. Steve turned to the group, ready to leave them.

"The tree line is northwest, eighty yards past the gate." He instructed. "Get out fast and give 'em hell."

"If anybody notices you, don't fight. Just shoot 'em." Jade finished for him.

"We'll meet you guys in the clearing with anybody else we find."

"Wait," one of the men stopped him. "You know what you're doing?"

"Yeah, I've knocked out Adolf Hitler over two-hundred times." He turned back around to walk away and the group looked at Jade for conformation. She was counting on her fingers. Giving up, she shrugged and followed him away. What the men didn't know was that Hitler didn't even know Steve or Jade existed.

* * *

**A/N: What did you guys think? I know...it was the entire rescue scene. I know that, but we got a good portion of it. This section was already 6,090 words total and if I were to keep going it was going to get super duper long and I'm not happy with going so long. But it was still a good portion. And the next chapter should be up soon!**

**Thanks guys and leave a review! :3**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Hello everyone! It's been so long hasn't it? I want to apologize for such a horribly long wait. I've got just about a week of school left. So that means that not only are my teachers forcing reviews for finals in our faces, they're also piling on the last minute things that they decided to wait to give us until now. And then of course I was involved with two different bands, one during school with after school commitments, the other after school with even more after school commitments. Seven days left and we're still not done with performances yet! WTF?! Anyways, I'm so deeply sorry for such a long wait. I shouldn't make you guys wait so long to read this, especially since you're so good to me. I don't deserve you guys as readers because you're just so wonderful. I don't blame you if you gave up on me. But if you stuck around thanks so much and I'm going to try to never take that long to update ever again.**

**Thanks for all those wonderful reviews guys! I've never gotten so many before!**

**And here is the long awaited return of Bucky! If you guys have any questions or anything, drop a review or feel free to private message me too! Please leave a review, let me know you guys are still here! I love you all so much!**

* * *

**Chapter 16: The Impossible Becomes Possible**

Jade wasn't one to reflect on the past in the midst of battle. Actually she hadn't really ever been in battle before so she really just figured it wasn't a good idea to focus on anything but the task at hand. But of course that didn't work out for her. Steve was now racing down the hallways, avoiding any guards, and practically dragging her along. His best friend was alive and he _needed _to go get him, urgently.

Jade had only met Bucky that one time when he had helped pull the rude man beating up Steve off of them. The only other stuff she knew about him was all heard from Steve. He seemed like a really nice guy though and Jade was happy that he was alive as well.

The rescued soldiers had escaped with them and all of them came to a point where avoiding the guards was somewhat impossible. Instead they had to push their way through fighting. There were Hydra men being tossed around in all directions. Steve was punching them in the stomach and then whacking them with his shield. Jade, not having a shield of her own would knock the wind out them and then quickly wrap her whip around their necks. She'd pull tight on the rope until whichever guard she was facing dropped unconscious. It was a simple strategy that worked for her. Unbeknownst to any of them, they were being watched by Johann Schmidt himself, who split secondly decided that his Hydra soldiers were inferior to the super soldiers (though he knew that all along) and activated the self destruct bombs inside of the factory. He now had seven minutes to escape the doom-awaiting structure.

The rescued soldiers headed out towards to exits to fight their way out of the compound. Jade saw a metal stairwell leading towards the upper floor's catwalk and she grabbed Steve's arm to pull him towards it. On the catwalk, they easily maneuvered their way across, occasionally having to knock out a guard or two. All the while they could hear explosions from outside.

A rather large hallway to their right led to a different section of the building. It was less industrial and more government building like. The walls and floors were made of brick and the overhead lights were turned off, making the only light come from the entrance to the hallway and a few of the open rooms. Out of one of these rooms, a short man with a trench coat, brief case, and fedora stepped out, his round glasses sliding down his nose slightly from perspiration. He stopped when he spotted the two super soldiers and stared for quite some time. He was face to face with two people who could snap his neck. One of them could even do it from a long distance and with leather. But Steve didn't move. Jade on the other hand didn't like the looks of this guy and started running after him. The short man quickly sped off and Jade was stopped by two hands on her waist. She struggled against them harshly.

Steve watched the man disappear for a second before jogging towards the room where he came out of. There was light coming from inside of it and it shone brightly on their dirt streaked faces. A light groan of what seemed like pain came from the room and Steve's head snapped over to it to. He grabbed Jade's hand out of instinct and led her inside.

The room was small and made out of the same brick as the hallway. There were misfit items lying about. A cart with a bucket on it was off to their left. Some file cabinets were against one wall. There was another groan of pain. "Sergeant…" they heard quite groggily. Steve looked over to see a man lying on a large metal table. "Three-two-five-seven…" The man was muttering incoherently now. Steve ran over to take a look and his face filled with such relief that Jade instantly knew who the muttering man was.

"Bucky?" Steve was a bit unsure. This looked like his friend, bloodied and bruised but looked like him. Sounded like him too, but the conditions he was in made him look a stranger to the blonde. "Oh my god…" It appeared they had been doing some kind of testing on him or at least torturing him for information. Jade rushed over to her friend's side and smiled down warmly at the wounded sergeant whose eyes widened a bit at the newcomer. Instantly Steve began freeing Bucky from his binds. Jade rolled her eyes when he ripped off the straps instead of simply just unbuckling them.

"Is…is that…"

"It's me," Steve told him reassuringly as if saying "me" would really help in anyway. Steve looked like a completely different person than when Bucky last saw him. "It's Steve."

"Steve," Bucky repeated. A smile lit up on the broken soldier's face. His friend had come to rescue him. He'd come for him!

"Come on," Steve said while pulling him up.

"Steve," Bucky repeated again, though this time a bit more stably. Steve helped up the brunette male and held him in place.

"I thought you were dead."

"I thought you were smaller…" Jade couldn't hold it back and she let out a short fit of giggles. Really noticing the strange girl for the first time, Bucky looked over at the dirty women in a tattered sparkly dress with a green jacket and furrowed his eyebrows. Something about this girl seemed very familiar. "Jade?" He asked, unsure if the right name had come to mind.

She waved a greeting to him shyly. "Hiya Bucky, nice to see you again," Bucky's eyes widened as they scanned over her…all of her.

"Well you sure look big-" He was cut off by a loud cough from his blonde best friend. Catching the jealous glint in his friend's eyes, Bucky smiled slightly at it. Suddenly a loud explosion sounded through the halls of the factory. Steve looked out towards the doorway. He caught sight of another map; little black triangles marking what he assumed were other Hydra factories. He quickly memorized them with his new and improved super soldier brain and went back into heroic soldier mode.

"Come on," he put Bucky's arm over his shoulder and Jade put his other on hers. Together they slowly were making their way out of the room.

"What happened to you…both of you?" He asked, his voice croaking from lack of moisture.

"We joined the Army," they replied in unison which kind of creeped him out. They supported Bucky on their shoulders until he once again gained movement in his legs. He removed himself from their shoulders and began striding alongside them.

"Did it hurt?" He asked them.

"A little," once again they replied in unison.

"Is it permanent?"

"So far," Bucky rolled his eyes at their speech pattern and asked another question.

"Do you guys _always _talk like that?"

Once again in unison, "No." Bucky just rolled his eyes. It didn't _seem _like that was true. They were coming up towards the catwalk of the main room when there were loud explosions. The floor shook beneath their feet. The large blasts only made the three walk faster down to the hallways. At the catwalk, they could easily see the bursts of flames below them that were shaking the metal bars of the railing. Steve leaned over and peered below and Bucky soon followed, but a large blast erupted beneath them and the two men ducked down to escape any debris or just the heat.

Jade whistled for the other two soldiers and they followed her up another set of metal stairs to a second catwalk in the room. It was narrower and they took a sharp turn towards the other end. Steve quickly turned once more only to hear a thick German accent. Jade was stopped in place, still hidden by the cover of a cement pillar. "Captain America! How exciting! I am a great fan of your films!" Jade ran to her friends and spotted the speaker. He was tall, but deathly pale and skinny. His hair was greasy and slicked back and he wore a quality black trench coat with shiny silver buttons. "Oh and the ever beautiful Lady Liberty!" He was mocking them and Jade narrowed her eyes at the man.

Steve, with his Captain Confidence as Jade liked to call it, slowly walked across the catwalk towards the German as he walked his way as well. "So" he dragged the word out with exaggeration. "Dr. Erskine managed it after all." A little pain struck Jade's heart at the mention of the doctor's name. "Not exactly an improvement, but still, impressive." The light bulb went off over Jade's head. It couldn't be. This was Johann Schmidt? He didn't seem like a super soldier, but then again the serum amplified everything about a person. If Schmidt was bad before, he was darn right evil now.

Steve seemed about done with the man because he just lost patience and clocked the guy right on the cheek. "You've got no idea." Schmidt was holding his cheek in his hand, but the weird part was that it looked like some of his skin had…moved around. Jade shuddered at the thought. Was it an effect of the serum?

Standing straight once more, Schmidt smirked slightly. "Haven't I?" Seeing what the Hydra leader was going to do, Jade called out the blonde's name quickly and Steve managed to bring his shield up just in time for it to be hit. A large indent of a fist was left in the metal. Steve stared at it in amazement before reaching for his gun. Schmidt stopped him by sending his fist toward him again, though this time it actually made contact. Steve was knocked back, the gun sliding from his hand towards the fiery bottom below them. It stopped right on the edge and then slid down to the burning depths of the factory. Schmidt made to advance further towards his enemy, yet Steve kept him back by kicking his chest using both legs with great force. Schmidt went flying back to the other side of the metal bridge. There was a clinking sound and Jade looked up to see the man from the hallway off to the side near the exit, pulling a lever. The bridge began to separate, one super soldier experiment near the exit, two more and their friend across from them.

Steve and Schmidt lifted themselves up and watched as a large gap formed between where they were standing. There were still explosions going on below. Jade grabbed the railing for support.

"No matter what lies Erskine told you, you see, I was his greatest success!" He yelled proudly, gesturing to himself. He reached up to where his neck was concealed by his jacket and started yanking on the skin. And it was peeling off with some restraint. Jade was about ready to vomit. It came off with a bit more pulling and he threw what was once his face down towards the fire. What was left was a horrifying scene.

Schmidt's head was a disturbing blood red color. His cheek bones were greatly defined. His eyes were sunken in, and his nose was open. There was a bridge and everything, but where there were usually two nostrils, was a large open hole, like all the muscle tissue was gone. It all resembled a skull. The whole thing was pretty much creepy. Jade didn't know if she should gasp, scream, or vomit into the fire below. She chose the first option…just to be safe.

"You don't have one of those do you?" Bucky asked the pair. His question was ignored, though he seemed quite serious.

"You are deluded Captain, both you and your weak dame." Jade already didn't like the words weak and dame, but when put together Jade was about ready to just snap Schmidt's neck right there. She made a move to just pounce, but Bucky grabbed her and held her back. There was no way she could make that jump. "You pretend to be simple soldiers, but in reality, you are just afraid to admit that we have left humanity behind." He and his short little friend were slowly moving towards the open exit. "Unlike you, I embrace it proudly. Without fear!"

"Then how come you're running?" Steve was just standing there, making no attempt to try and stop the Hydra leader and that made Jade furious. They should be running to stop him, not letting him escape!

The skull faced man didn't answer his question. He pressed a button inside the elevator and the doors slid closed. Steve just stared at it again.

There were more explosions and Steve tried to cover up the three of them as best as he could with his shield. Steve was looking up towards the ceiling. Jade followed his gaze to see another set of doors with a red blinking light…several stories above them. A steel bar was hanging from the ceiling leading almost directly towards the doors. Jade knew what he was thinking and Jade internally groaned when he started running to the next flight of stairs. "Come on," he ordered them, "Up."

Hesitantly, Jade followed her companions up the stairs towards the top floors. It wasn't much of a ways away, especially since they were running. Jade's muscles were aching badly and she was sweating buckets. She was _sure _that looked attractive. *Cue exaggerated eyeroll.*

Steve stopped them where the side of the catwalk met the steel bar. It was a little far across and was dangerously shaking due to the massive explosions. Steve made a split second decision: it was their only way out. "Let's go, one at a time." He first helped Jade over the railing and once she was standing on the edge, she was clutching onto the railing behind her like there was no tomorrow. The irony was that if she didn't move, there really wouldn't be one. "Go on Jade."

Her worry filled eyes looked behind her at the blonde, who was encouraging her to walk to what could most likely be her death. He nodded to her and she only bit her lip in reply before taking a (not so) calming deep breath and then turning towards the other side again. With cautious steps, she slowly began shifting her way across. There were a couple explosions as she crossed and the brunette had to resist dropping to the ground and just clutching onto the narrow beam. It took a solid three minutes (it doesn't sound like a lot, but when Death is basically about to snatch you up, it's way longer than necessary.) for her to cross the beam safely. Seeing this, Steve nodded in satisfaction and continued to help Bucky over the railing.

Things were going pretty well for Bucky until part of the beam suddenly became slightly loose and slid down. Bucky stopped for a moment in panic before continuing. It was creaking and he was stumbling from the extreme blasts below. The beam was slowly loosening and it wouldn't be long until it came completely free. Bucky went for it, running across the beam and grabbing onto the other side's railing. Jade helped him over, but the beam came down some so it wasn't completely crossable and Steve was still over there.

It was Jade's worst nightmare. The possibility of Steve falling and not surviving was out there in the open. She wouldn't be able to take it. Her best friend, the guy she had grown feelings for, might just die in front of their eyes. And they couldn't stop it. She only hoped that his super soldier stamina would safely get him across.

Steve realized this too. He stared wide eyed at the gaping hole between him, his best friend, and the girl that meant so much to him. Would this be the end? Would he die that day without ever telling Jade how he felt? Steve didn't want that. He wanted to tell her…he wanted to take her on dates and get to know her even better than he already did. He wanted them to have their first kiss that wasn't for show or to get Howard Stark off her back. He wanted to be with her.

But it didn't matter, because he might never even get the chance to hug her again.

"There's got to be a rope or something!" Bucky yelled to him desperately.

He wouldn't make it. There was no way. Jade and Bucky needed to get out of here, to live.

"Just go!" He yelled finally. "Get out of here!" He regretted those words as soon as he saw the panicked look on Jade's face and how her eyes were getting shiny. He _really_ didn't want her to cry.

"Not without you!" Bucky was desperate. He wasn't going to let his friend die. There had to be another way. He just got him back; he wasn't losing the blonde again.

Jade was still silent. He was giving up. He would sacrifice his life so they could escape. She never wanted that. Pleading with him, she mouthed "Please" and he seemed to give in because he was soon bending the railing aside for an easier jump. He backed up all the way the to the end of the balcony overlooking the fiery bottom and breathed before running full force to the edge and pushing himself off, now flying through the air.

He could do it. He could make it. Jade became less assured when the fire below erupted upwards and blocked their view from their leaping friend. Did it burn him? Did he not make it and fall?

.

.

.

.

_BANG! _Jade yelped in shock when soot covered hands enveloped the edge, inches from where they were standing. Jade pulled apart their railing and bent it aside like Steve had previously done. Bucky was staring at her in shock because of the _unusual _strength. She looked up at him and rolled her eyes, motioning for them to help up Steve, who was struggling to pull himself up. They acted quickly, each grabbing a hand and yanking him up. Steve must have found some footing, because the load suddenly became a lot less heavy for them and all three went tumbling down onto the metal catwalk. Bucky had let go, but Jade was still clutching onto Steve and somehow they twisted. Steve landed with his back to the ground and Jade landed on top of him.

They panted heavily and stared at each other before Jade's face broke out into a grin and she hugged him tightly, nearly crying out in relief. _He made it, he's alive. _Steve hesitated before wrapping his arms around her waist and squeezing her back. Her super strength prevented his from completely crushing every bone in her body.

They stayed like that awhile, simply relishing in the fact that they had both crossed the gap alive. An awkward cough came out of Bucky and with flushed cheeks, they separated and pulled each other up. Steve immediately went back into Captain Mode and he led them through their destination: the door with the blinking red light.

Turns out it was an emergency exit. It made sense. When the self destruct buttons were pressed, lights would turn on and flash above the exits. There was a rounding flight of stairs that they glided down as quickly as they could and they were led to another door with a flashing red light. Steve pushed it open and a rough breeze evaded their personal space. It was dark outside and chaos had surrounded the factory. The rescued soldiers had basically taken over all of the Hydra soldier's weapons. They had even blew open the gates using one of the tanks. And they were now exiting, taking the weapons and tanks with them.

Steve shouted for his companions to follow him and the pushed their way through the crowd, slowly making it to the open gates with little fight. Most of the Hydra soldiers were taken out or retreating. Some had even realized their leader had deserted them and had given up.

The rescued soldiers had all met up at the gate, waiting for their saviors and once Steve, Jade and Bucky met up with them, they all immediately fled the area, more than happy to get away from the Hydra factory they had called hell.

It was fairly late at night when they escaped. Everyone looked hungry and tired, but it seemed as though Steve had every intention of walking back to Italy through the entire night. Jade grabbed his arm to stop him, trying hard to ignore the amazing muscles he had, and tried to give him a stubborn look. It was not easy to do so seeing as he was starting to make her melt into a puddle of Jade goo.

"Steve, these soldiers are tired. They've been locked up in cages, packed in together for a long time. They've been walking for awhile now. They need to rest. You need to rest. I need to rest." He didn't appear to be backing down. Steve wanted to get back to camp and prove Colonel Phillips wrong. He didn't have time to rest. "James needs it. We found him strapped to a table; beat up, unconscious and muttering random crap. He probably hasn't gotten a good night's rest in a very long time. All of us need to eat and rest. Then in the morning we'll be ready to really get walking. Please, at least just think about it." She gave him her best puppy dog guys, hoping Steve was weak for that kind of thing. Fortunately he seemed to be because he eventually exhaled in defeat and nodded.

Jade smiled in appreciation and they called for the men to move off to the side. They were a safe distance from the factory that they could set up camp nearby where they were. In the morning they would make it back to Italy. In the morning they would prove the impossible, possible.


End file.
